


Legends Never Die

by Bisexual_Fangirl_Forever



Series: Rainbow Tomato [30]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Identity Reveal, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Needs a Hug, Adrien says fuck, Aged-Up Character(s), Akumatized Main Character(s), Alcohol, Badass Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Blood and Injury, Character Death, Depression, Discussion of Abortion, Divorced Ayla Cesaire & Nino Lahiffe, F/F, F/M, Ghosts, Grief/Mourning, Hey look it's that big project I was working on lol, Hispanic Character, How Do I Tag, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, Luka Couffaine Loves Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, M/M, Mental Breakdown, Miraculous Ladybug Next Generation, No beta we die like Marinette in the first paragraph, Not Beta Read, Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Parenthood, Post-Canon, Pregnancy, Rabbit Alix Kubdel | Bunnyx, Snake Luka Couffaine | Viperion, Strong Marinette Dupain-Cheng, World Building is hard man, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:28:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 26,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28091676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bisexual_Fangirl_Forever/pseuds/Bisexual_Fangirl_Forever
Summary: Marinette Couffaine was a hero. Mind you...was. Now that she was dead, a year passed, and her daughter makes a run in with someone that may change her life forever.What will happen when she figures out the truth of who her mother was, and with akuma's getting more and more deadly, what will happen if she reaches her breaking point?I have no self control so take it’s Spotify playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2MbUzyWOQJr5e4UJwkoi1i?si=RYRQEBD1SH6DnfK13LA4ygKeep in mind I have edited things from canon, so some things may not line up with the show. Bascially, I am pretty much ignoring the small details in canon.Chapter updates bi-weekly every Tuesday or Friday to give me more time to write! I may not be too-too consistent, so please bare with me
Relationships: Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe, Chloé Bourgeois/Sabrina Raincomprix, Ivan Bruel/Mylène Haprèle, Juleka Couffaine/Rose Lavillant, Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Marc Anciel/Nathaniel Kurtzberg, Ondine/Kagami Tsurugi, Other Relationship Tags to Be Added, past - Relationship
Series: Rainbow Tomato [30]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1623583
Comments: 15
Kudos: 22





	1. Show Yourself

**Author's Note:**

> I had a lot of help from my friends at the NathMarc discord server (Invite here: https://discord.gg/GmPEXBA8Fp ) including, but not limited too: Kit, Nyx, Snek, Blu, Andy, and everyone else who is/was supporting me along the way! Thank you guys so much for making this possible!! 
> 
> Also, for each hero outfit I describe i know they may sound weird, but just hold on a sec and I'll post what they look like!
> 
> This chapter was inspired by this song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMz7KwJiS24&list=RDKlb4Z04UFZg&index=13

It was exactly when the clacking of hand cuffs went over Hawkmoth's hands-Gabriel Agreste's hands-that Ladybug knew something was wrong. She had been fighting this villain for years, ever since she was in school, and now she was married and had a beautiful daughter! However, she was probably never going to be able to see her grow up.

With hesitance, the hero glanced down, wincing at the large piece of debris sticking out of her. She never even had time, or energy, to call her Miraculous Ladybug.... With a sickening cough she fell to the ground, hitting her head on the pavement underneath her. She could hear Viperion, her dear and loving husband, cry out as he turned around to watch her. He was frantic, knee's giving out as he ran towards the woman; he obviously had no energy left as well, and was emotionally drained, but he gathered his love into his arms anyway.

She couldn't hear what he was saying, and she could feel a copper tasting substance trickle out of her mouth, yet all Mari could think about was how she was going to miss everyone. Everything. With one last shaky breath she smiled and brushed some of her husbands tears off of his face.

"I love you..." she muttered watching as the edges of her vision grew dark until the only thing Marinette could see was endless black. The heroine knew she had died, felt it really, and yet she still thought she was alive. Ladybug opened her eyes-opened them?

In confusion she sat up, surrounded by all black, and found herself to be more pale then she was. Every part of her was a light nearly translucent blue. Was she a ghost? Suddenly, a hand as pale as hers was placed in front of her. Marinette's eyes trailed up the arm and gasped at who she saw.

"Welcome, Marinette, to the earrings," said the very first Ladybug. Mari recognized her as Laurette Payne, a legend. Shakily, the dearly departed hero took the hand and got up, staring at her surroundings. They seemed to be in a fully black room, just the two of them, until suddenly more ghost like figures showed up. Miguel, Light, all of the past Ladybugs appeared one by one, male's, females, in all various looks, shapes, heights, and skin colors. They all smiled at their new addition, but Marinette was still just confused.

"W-where am I? Am I still....dead?" Laurette nodded and placed her gloved hands onto the other's cheeks, wiping away tears she didn't know were there.

"Marinette, all of us are dead...but we stay alive thanks to the earrings. Let me explain. When a Ladybug dies at the hand of battle, we live on here, in the earrings. We get to contact our loved ones beyond the grave as well, but mostly we live on to see our next protegee," Laurette turned the woman around so that she was facing a large screen. It was playing the recent death over and over again. The adult nearly sobbed while watching Chat Noir and Carapace rip a hysterical Viperion off her dead body.

"We watch through the jewelry, sometimes helping the Ladybug in each others own way. Now you, you get to help. To help whoever will take the place of the world's greatest hero." Marinette nodded and smoothed out her hair, still taking everything in.

As the rest of the Ladybugs came to greet her, some speaking in different languages, Mari was happy, but scared, for the one to come after her. They had to be able to take on that pressure and danger, the responsibility and the ability to keep cool under all the eyes watching her every move. She wished that much, that they knew what they were doing.

* * *

Harmony was fifteen when her mother died, and she was sixteen now. She liked to believe she was over it, but she knew that she wasn't. Yet, still, her father was worse off. The once musical sensation Luka Couffaine was dead to the world, his sparkly eyes lost their glint, and the warm and bright vibe to him turned dull and grey. Harmony refused to let herself feel sad when others, like her dad, were suffering more than her. The teen would wake up at night sometimes, a hole in her chest and the word "MOM!" still on her lips. It was a night like tonight, and she was leaning up against her headboard with her legs up against her chest.

Her long, silky, chocolate brown hair was down past mid back instead of in it's usual bun, causing it to fall into her face. She rubbed her tired eyes, wanting sleep, but knowing it would not come to her. The daughter needed that embrace from her mother, but she knew that she wouldn't be able to get that. The closest she would be able to get was either her aunt's Juleka and Rose, or her father. But...his hugs had never been the same.

Deciding that a simple glass of water may help, the girl got out of bed and made it down her stairs to the kitchen. The lonely feeling did let up a little when she left her room, mainly for the fact that it used to be her mothers when she was little. For now, Harmony only tugged a blanket she brought around her shoulders tighter and tip toed down the hall. For the most part she kept her gaze ahead, but she ended up stopping when she caught the mirror next to her, taking herself in.

Her deep blue eyes were sleepy and her few freckles here and there didn't really stand out against her skin. The hole in her chest was aching for some parental love, and in a last second she turned around, her strides passing her mother's old sewing room and heading for her father's. She was only one step away from opening the door and launching herself at Luka, but stopped with her hand inches away from the handle. There was noises coming from inside that made her feet plant where they were as if they grew roots that went down deep into the floor.

Sobs. Sobs were echoing from his room and out into his daughters ears, causing her heart to sink. What was she thinking, bothering him? He was grieving as well, she had no right to come and interrupt him like this! Hesitantly, she turned back towards the hall, but froze in shock at what she saw.

Her Mom's old sewing room door was wide open and floating-floating!- in the middle of the hallway was some...some being! It-She? They? Did they have pronouns? They were red with a black spot on the middle of their forehead, along with a tail and...antennas? Whatever they were didn't matter, because in their tiny hands-paws?-was her mother's sewing box. The round red one with the black dots, the one that was so special to her that she never let her daughter even touch it! And this....alien was taking it!

Harmony's eyes widened as she watched the creature begin to fly away, heading straight for the open window that was in the kitchen, letting in a small breeze that caused the brunette to shiver.

Thinking on her feet, the girl dropped her blanket and raced for the opening, nearly tripping as she passed the creature. At the last second, she reached the glass, slamming it shut with a bang. Wincing, Harmony hoped her father didn't hear, but she turned around and stared into the eyes of the robber. With heavy breathing and a panicked mind, she opened her mouth to whisper her first warning.

"I don't know who, or what, you are, but put my mother's sewing box down. Please, she loved it, and I don't want anything bad to happen to it." They seemed to be thinking long and hard, before twisting around and flying straight out the backdoor, which the wind had flung open.

"No!" The sixteen year old cried out, following them and stopping on the fire escape, taking in the night sky. Paris was calm and quiet, not even an animal was caught dead in the streets. The stars were shining above, and she would've stopped to marvel at how beautiful they were, but like a strawberry in a field of blueberry's the creature was standing out and getting away in the moonlight.

With nothing else on her mind except getting the box back, the Couffaine child ran down the flights of metal stairs and leaped off the ledge. She stumbled before redeeming her balance once more, racing to keep up with the one who stole the box. The whole time she was shouting at them only the fear of waking other people up was keeping her from screaming.

"Please! It's my Moms! It was special to her!" She begged, chest moving frantically up in down as she wheezed. Her nightgown was fluttering around her ankles, restricting her stride. Unwanted tears were starting to fall down her cheeks and leaving tracks in their place. "D-do you know her?! Her name was Marinette Couffaine, but that box is all I have-" Harmony was cut off as she tripped over her own bare feet, falling to the ground, scraping her palms and ruining her pajama's. Her shoulders trembled as she sobbed. "That box is all I have left of her..."

The teen sat there in the middle of the road, crying for the loved one she had lost for the first time in a while.. She was so absorbed with what she was feeling, that she didn't notice the small red being place the box a few feet away from her. When Harmony finally realized what was happening she whipped her head up and found herself face to face with the alien. They stayed in that position until the latter spoke up.

"My name is Tikki, and you're the daughter of Marinette?" She said, her voice high pitched and curious. Harmony hesitated before nodding, watching as Tikki smiled wide.

"W-what are you? How do you know my Mom?" the human asked, wiping her face from any trace of sorrow. Now was not the time to be crying.

"That's a long story! One of my favorites actually! But, I was your mother's kwami, and the reason we never met is because she wanted to keep the people from her home life and hero life a separate!" Her chirpy tone fell onto deaf ears as the teen processed what she was told.

"What do you mean...a hero life?"

"Oh....I'm surprised you don't know...." Tikki's gaze fell to the ground, her eyes turning shiny with liquid. "How do you think she died?" The question caught her off guard.

"I was told that it was a car accident, why? Was-was it something else?" Tikki made a small concerned noise that would've made the girl coo if her mind wasn't racing.

"Marinette...she didn't die in a car crash. She was Ladybug," the reality of what Harmony was told rammed her in the face like a sudden freight train. Her mother was Ladybug. She died like Ladybug did. How did she not know? What was keeping her from connecting the dots? Why...why did her father lie to her about the death?

"I wish I could just talk to her again. To-to get her side of what happened," she muttered under her breath, not expecting Tikki to turn around and bring the red and black box toward her.

"This is the box of Miraculous, holding almost every item that gives the heroes their power! I think I know a way to let you see her again," suddenly hopeful, the Couffaine shifted from her uncomfortable position. Carefully, the kwami grabbed the girls hand with her own tiny ones and placed it on top of the box, pressing down gently on a black spot. To Harmony's surprise, the spot went down like a button, and the top of the box flung open, along with little spots on the side opening like drawers.

The younger's breath hitched as she stared down at all the jewelry. There was a fox, a turtle, a pig, and more! They were all there....minus three, for which Tikki told her were the butterfly, the peacock, and the cat ("Plagg is gonna be mad at me, but this is more important," she had muttered upon stating such information.)

Tikki pointed to the miraculous in the center, and the teen picked up the earrings, cupping them gently in her hands. Her mother wore these when she was saving Paris. She wore these when she left at random times, using them to fight off akuma's. She wore them...and her daughter never knew their purpose.

"Put them on," the kwami said. "Then say 'Tikki, spots on!' and the they'll do the rest." Something about that didn't sit right with the girl...it felt like she was stealing something precious from her Mom, in this case, magic words.

"Would I...be able to say something else?"

"Of course, you just need to say my name first!"

"Ok," The teen responded, reluctantly placing the earrings in her ears. Normally she would frown upon putting on anything that someone else might've worn without sanitizing it first, but this was an exception. She would be able to see her Mom one final time!

With the miraculous in her ears, Harmony took a deep breath, not ready for what was going to happen. "Tikki! It's now or never!" For a second she felt nothing, before a freeing feeling washed over her, and the next thing she knew her whole outfit had changed.

She had on a full suit that started at her neck and went down to engulf her feet into shoes. It was all red and black, the red parts started just above her collar bones and stopping at her waist like a short sleeved crop top. She had on what looked to be red elbow length gloves, but they were attached to the suit with black fabric covering her elbows.

There was more red on her thighs, making a diagonal line starting from her hip and down almost to her knee. Just like with the black between her forearm and her upper arm, Harmony's legs did the same. There was black after her thigh and from the shin down was red. Everywhere else (on her neck like a choker, the fabric on her elbows and knees, and from her waist down to the line on her thighs) was black, so she was covered head to toe. Littered all over the red was black spots like her mother's suit, except in the middle of her chest was a small black heart.

She reached up to touch her face and found a mask to be there, later she would learn that it was all black, minus the skinny gold line that went around the eye holes. But, the teen's favorite part of the outfit, was the small light blue wings on her back, they were obviously for decoration (like small cape) but they were cute nonetheless.

"Woah..." She muttered, leaning down to take in the hero suit. She giggled a little when she saw the famous yo-yo wrapped twice just below her belly button, resting at her side just like her Mom. Suddenly, a quiet whoosh came from the earrings, and bright light followed. It caused the girl to close her eye's tightly at first, but soon she opened them again, and what she saw brought tears to nearly slip down passed her eyelashes.

Clips from what looked to be a history of the miraculous were floating all around her like TV's playing different movies at the same time. They were all tinted a light blue, nearly white, but one certain clip was hard to miss. It was floating right in front of her, and it was of her mother-Ladybug- falling over, Viperion crying and racing towards her. Her _real_ death. The sight made her tear up, but what came after made the emotional dam break.

The light blue version Marinette appeared in front of her daughter, only a couple of strides away. She was wearing the Ladybug outfit, but her hair was free and down at her collarbones; like the ghost-esque version of herself. She smiled warmly as Harmony's gloved hands flew to her mouth. Her-her Mom was....was.... _she was right there_.

"C'mere, Cupcake," The woman welcomed, opening her arms for a hug. Without hesitation, Harmony ran forward and into the olders arms, not even questioning on how she was able to interact with her like she was a full human being. All she could think about that she was finally able to hug her Mom again.

"I-I-I missed you," The teen stuttered, sobbing into her parent's shoulder. Mari just held her tighter, rubbing the top of her hair (which was up in her usual bun now thanks to the Miraculous), and shifting her weight from one foot to the other. Oh how Harmony missed this, missed the feeling, the warmth, of her mother's hug. They stood together, holding each other, until the parent ended up separating the embrace, pulling her daughter away from her but keeping her hands on her shoulders.

"Hon, I don't have much time, but I need you to know that I'm sorry," she said, wiping away her daughters tears with her thumbs. "I am so, so, sorry that I'm not here to help you anymore. I will always love you. No matter what, okay?" Harmony nodded, and so Marinette took that as a sign to continue.

"Cupcake..." She paused. "The butterfly and peacock miraculous are still out there, as I'm sure you know. We need someone out there to fight against that evil, I would like nobody else but you to hold that responsibility." Without even asking the question, Harmony knew what she was trying to say. "Would you do the honors of becoming the new Ladybug?"

The teen took a second to think about her answer. Becoming the new Ladybug? Was she ready to handle that? The pressure and the responsibility? The...danger? She closed her eyes, focusing on what she was about to say.

"Yes. I'll become the new hero of Paris, I'll do it for you," when Harmony opened her eyes the landscape was suddenly darker. All the memories were gone, her Mother was gone too. "I love you..." She muttered, and she could swear that somewhere in her mind, Mari responded with her own small "I love you too Cupcake."

With a grin, the teen stretched out her limbs, admiring her new suit more. "So, new Ladybug of Paris," she muttered to herself. "You wanna test out the powers?" Carefully, she grabbed her yo-yo and played with it a couple times like it was a toy, before flinging it across the street like she had seen other hero's do all her life (after grabbing the miraculous box of course). It was like a grappling hook!

As she flew away, she had no idea if anybody had seen her, and she hoped for the life of her that nobody did. However, luck just wasn't on her side, as someone did see. Cam simply needed to use the bathroom, but ended up watching the new Ladybug become, well, the new Ladybug. At first he thought he was dreaming it all, the weird alien creature, the transformation, the blue light? That couldn't have been real, right? Right? 

He stumbled as he made his way back to his room, making a mental note. _He had to tell Adrien._


	2. Sitting in the Hall of Fame

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is extremly hard formatting from Discord to ao3 dear god

Cam Lahiffe had a normal life. His father was a deejay, a successful one at that, he liked tea from this super cool tea shop across his street, and his mother was a blogger who traveled the world.

The boy used to be in her video's actually, being shown off in baby photos and little achievements. Even his first steps were recorded for the whole world to see! Whenever Cam missed his Mom, he would look back to her blog (renamed Alya on the Go from what used to be the Ladyblog) scrolling past the buildings she saw and pictures of whatever she had eaten that morning to find those old video's once more.

* * *

Looking back, he should've known his parents were going to get divorced. They fought off camera more in the later videos, even if most of it was cut out or poorly masked by up beat music. He couldn't remember what their breaking point was, as it all took place when he was young, but at some point the videos of him abruptly ended and in place of them were selfies of Alya in New York, newly single.

To this day Cam still didn't know officially why they divorced. It could've been Nino's late nights, or Alya's stubborn nature, or...or it could've been because of him. There were times where the teen would analyze the arguments in the background, hoping for any answer to his burning questions, but would only find bits and pieces with his name in their mouth.

He was heartbroken when he learned so, and immediately began to do whatever he could so that he didn't ruin his fathers life any more (as his mother barely acknowledged his existence and would rather focus on her new life with a new family). He was already the bottom of their divorce, so he couldn't be anymore of a burden. As his grades arouse, so did his anxiety and stress level. He was scared he wasn't doing enough. Worried that who he was as a person was disappointing his dad.

It was only when both Ladybug, a well renowned hero, and Marinette, his Godmother, died, that he laid back a little.

Nino was a wreck, and so was his son, but Cam wasn't as close to Mari as his father. The adult took it to heart, and watching him grieve was hard. But soon, he did get better, and he made sure to talk to his son more. To hang out and teach him things, to take the time to tell him that he loved him no matter who he was and who he was going to be. Those talks helped lighten up the anxiety, but it never really went away, so Cam still held onto that fear that he wasn't enough.

It had been almost a year after the woman's death that Cam realized that through out all of that mess, Adrien Agreste was no where to be found. Adrien was Nino's closest friend, meaning that he was a frequent to their household, but he had disappeared suddenly without any warning.

Nobody could blame him, his father turned out to be Hawkmoth and his mother was a whole different story, so he had a right to be sad. However, no word from him period was a shock, and Cam was starting to get worried. So one morning the boy went to his father, whom was testing a new remix he had created.

"Hey, Dad?" He asked, wringing his hands together. "D-do you know how Uncle Adrien is?" Nino paused what he was doing and took off his headphones fully. He seemed to think for a second before finally thinking of his answer.

"Last I heard of him was that he needed some more time to think about his situation. That was around a couple of months ago..." he trailed off as he took out his phone to check the texts between the two. "Yeah, a month ago to the dot. I wonder if he's doing okay...why don't you go visit him Champ? I'm sure he'll love seeing you again!" Nino suggested, getting off the couch and rubbing his son's short and messy brown hair.

Cam didn't look particularly like one parent, but like both at the same time. He had dark skin like his father, and needed glasses over his emerald green eyes to see anything at all. He had a "beauty mark" right under his right cheek as Mari used to call it, and was rather on the shorter side. From the blog videos of him, people used to admire his little baby fat, but now that he was older it evened out, although he wasn't as skinny as others.

"I-I-uh, would he like me coming over out of the blue? What if he's doing something right now? What if he's busy or not at the mansion?" he asked, stuttering. His father nodded and took out his phone, sending out a quick text.

"There! Now he has at least a little warning. You can do this little dude," the older encouraged, leaning down to give him a little kiss on the forehead. "Say hi to him for me, okay? I have to finish this remix before I can do anything else tonight."

His father huffed, turning back towards his equipment. Cam gulped but nodded, grabbing his phone and keys before leaving the apartment to visit the one he hadn't in a while. The walk to the Agreste mansion was full of his gut feeling screaming at him to leave, to turn back, but he just ignored it. It was Uncle Adrien after all, he wasn't dangerous.

* * *

Cam paused at the big gates outside the mansion. He knew that he was welcome there, but standing outside those gates he still felt awkward and...like a stranger.

Taking a deep breath, he rang the doorbell, waiting for the big gates to creek open. When they didn't right away, Cam shifted from foot to foot, feeling his face turn red in embarrassment.

It felt like everybody who was passing by was watching his every move as he rang the doorbell once more. He kept on wringing his hands together, nearly jumping three feet in the air when the metal teeth of the mansion's jaws opened finally.

Cam let out a sigh of relief and ran to the front door of the house, letting himself in. The mansion was....a wreck. There was dust everywhere, settling over every surface that could be touched. Furniture was turned over and debris was scattered all around. With a wince Cam entered the foyer, not sure where his proclaimed Uncle was.

"A-Adrien?" He shouted, getting no answer in response. Worried, Cam began to make his way through the house, checking every nook and cranny. Growing more and more concerned by the second the teen ran up the stairs and was about to race straight into one of the rooms he saw, when he heard talking.

"Plagg, you weren't supposed to let anybody in!" He heard Adrien say.

"Come on man!" Came a strange voice soon after. "You can't sit around do nothing for the rest of your life! At least go to the store and get me more cheese."

"I can't...I really don't think I can do anything anymore...." Adrien muttered. "My father is a terrorist, Nathalie was one too, Ladybug is dead, my mother was in a coma in my house and I didn't even know about it. I think I have a right to be sad." Cam made a confused noise and slowly made his way over to the conversation, his curious nature getting over his anxiety.

"What about Gorilla? You had him!"

"I fired him. He had a right to leave after how he was treated."

"Okay, but you've been in bed for months! People need their Chat Noir back!" _What?_

"Plagg, enough. Chat Noir is- _what was that_?"

Cam winced when the floorboard he was leaning on creaked. The Lahiffe child held his breath as he heard heavy footsteps coming his way. Frozen in place, he could only watch as the door he was listening from slammed open, revealing a disheveled, but alive, Adrien.

Adrien's old blond locks were greasy and hanging at his shoulders, obviously he hadn't taken a shower in days. There was a permanent five o'clock shadow wrapping around the former models face, and his eyes were so sunken in that you couldn't even tell that he used to be, well, a model. The "Plagg" he was talking too definitely wasn't human. He was floating just behind the adult, yet the black cat was still in sight of Cam. Whatever the thing was, it was staring at the teen with a look like "oh shit."

The teen was wide eyed and turning red with the only thought going through his mind was 'I've been caught.' He was going to get into so much trouble it was immeasurable! The Agreste sighed and rubbed his temples, most likely suffering from a major headache. He gestured his unofficial nephew inside, apparently not minding the mess at all.

Just like the first floor, every piece of furniture was broken or turned over, except this time it looked to be from a fit of rage more then anything. Dust had multiplied like bunnies and the grand monitor of his was cracked and chipped like somebody punched it over and over again.

Looking down at Adrien's bandaged hands, Cam suspected he knew who broke it.

"I believe you heard," the adult bitterly said, sitting on his childhood bed that was littered with glass and pill bottles alike. "You were coming in to check on me, right? The once legendary Adrien Agreste, the only sane one in a broken family of terrorists."

Cam nodded, standing in the middle of the room, not sure what to do. It was only when Plagg shrugged and nodded to a rolley chair that he actually sat down and began his questions. He chose them carefully, not wanting to push too far.

"So...how have you been?" His uncle only laughed and reached over, grabbing a bottle half full of a brown liquid and taking a swig.

"I'm sure you know the answer to that question." There was an odd silence before Cam began again.

"You....were Chat Noir?" Adrien winced and immediately the teen felt terrible for asking the question, and he was about to backtrack when the creature in the room spoke up.

"Yeah, he was awesome too! But all he's been doing ever since, you know when, is sitting around! He hasn't even gotten me my cheese yet!" In the aliens eyes Cam could tell that he wasn't actually as selfish as he seemed, he really did care for the adult like he himself did.

"I've told Plagg before, so I'm going to tell you now too," Adrien scowled as he stared his guest straight in the eyes, making said boy squirm. "Chat Noir is dead. He died along with...with..."

He stole a look at the ground, staring at it like it was his favorite thing to watch the dust and trash. "He died along with her, never to come back for anything, or anyone.."

Cam sighed, his shoulders falling and he adjusted his glasses, copying his uncle and looking at the ground. He hunched in on himself, barreting him on being lectured-as it was something he hated as it showed he had messed up. 

"Nobody can force you to become someone you aren't, but sitting around doing nothing isn't really....the best thing to be doing right now?" He said, timid as he was unsure if it was his place to say. There was a scoff.

"Yeah? And what else can I do? I have no purpose, nothing to do anymore and nobody who needs me."

"Well, you have me? And you have my Dad and, apparently, Plagg as well. We'll always be here for you?" The adult only frowned, nodding along as he threw the glass that was once in his hands behind him, bouncing on the bed (Cam cringed at the thought of it falling and crashing on the ground).

"Good to fucking know."

"And, as for something to do," he stood up and gestured around the room. "We could always clean up the place?" His voice trailed off at the end, not sure how the model was going to handle what he was saying.

"What's the point? It's not like anybody is coming over to say hi anyway," the blond responded with, flopping down on his back and staring up at the ceiling. The younger shared a look with the floating being-seriously what was he?- and they both shrugged.

Leaning down, the human picked up one of the bottles and gathered a couple in his arms, moving across the room to a slightly full trash can and dumping them in, repeating that process until the older caught on to what he was doing.

"You know you can't do all of that alone?" Adrein pointed out. Cam only nodded. "...fine, as long as you don't touch any of the alcohol, I'll pick those up," with a groan he stood and reluctantly began to help clean, Plagg watching from the back. For the next couple of months they cleaned together, little by little. It helped get Adrien up and out of his slump, actually shaving and taking a shower.

Cam would bring in supplies (Gloves, wipes, trash bags, more trash bags, even more trash bags, and cheese), slowly but surely able to help his uncle. In return, Adrien would supply him with different stories and facts about having the miraculous, expanding the boys knowledge. After a good month or two passed the Agreste mansion was finally looking better, no more dust and refurnished rooms.

It was when they were taking a break that Plagg ended up bringing up the elephant in the room while eating his snack.

"Y'know," he said through his Camembert. "If you aren't going to become Chat Noir again, then we should probably find the guardian box. It's with the old Ladybug right?" Adrien sighed and nodded, brushing some hair out of his face that had fallen from his ponytail.

"You're right, but even _I_ don't know her identity. When she died Viperion, after we all calmed down a little, took her body away so she could detransform in peace." Cam nodded along, having had seen the clip of the death happen over and over again. It was one of the first posts on Alya on the Go that was Ladybug related in a while.

"Well, I know who it is. Just tell me when and I can go along and grab the box," Plagg stated nonchalantly, causing Cam's mouth to fall open a little in shock.

"W-wait, you knew her? Why didn't you say anything?" Cam asked as the kwami-as he now knew- finished up his snack.

"Against the kwami code! If I was able to I would've spilled the beans years ago, watching this knucklehead try to figure it out has been horrible."

"I'm going to ignore what you just said about me," the 'knucklehead' started, turning to Cam. The model was looking much better now, clean and shaven. Getting up and doing something helped him (it also helped that he was starting to go to therapy as well), "and focus on the fact that Plagg, you should go and grab it at some point tonight. Make sure that it's pitch black so nobody sees you."

The kwami had agreed, but he obviously didn't do what he was told, as if he did then Cam wouldn't be running for Adrien's the day after seeing the new Ladybug take flight. He would've gone the moment he saw the blue light, but the thought of being outside, alone, in pitch darkness where nobody would know where he was, scared him more then he would like to think.

Without even waiting for his knock to be answered on the big door to the house, 'cause the gate was always open now, he ran into the mansion. Racing up the stairs he slammed into his Uncle's room, interrupting Adrien's pacing.

"Cam!" He stopped, shocked to see the boy. "What are you doing here so out of breath?"

"W-Where's the M-Miraculous box?" The teen wheezed, not one to run for so long.

"I don't know! That's what Plagg was just explaining to me now!"

"Well, I was going to give you the box, but I gave it to Tikki instead. I let her free from those earrings and told her to bring the box here, cause I wanted to sleep! So it's not my fault she's not here yet!" With a groan the adult rubbed his eyes and turned to Cam, giving him a look like 'can you believe this kwami?'

"I don't think Tikki is going to be bringing that box in anytime soon," Cam said finally, watching as both the kwami and his holders eyes widened.

"Cam," Adrien started, racing towards his friend's son. He placed his hands on his shoulders. "What happened?" Right away the brunette recounted all that he had seen, starting from the girl running after Tikki with the box and ending with her flying away with the miraculous.

"This...isn't good," the blond muttered, falling down to sit on the couch that was newly installed. "If the Hawkmoth of today finds out about there being a new Ladybug....who know's what they'd do..."

"The real question is," Plagg said, joining into the conversation once more.

"Will you be prepared to become Chat Noir once again for the sake of Paris?" Cam finished.

* * *

The woman had been given the butterfly and peacock miraculous from Mr. Agreste, and it was the best thing that had ever happened to her. She had successfully ruined the person who ruined her life; Ladybug was dead!

Because of this new information she laid off on the akuma's for a while, until she saw it. "It" being a red and black blur go past her window one night, using a yo-yo no less. She was enraged, Ladybug was meant to be dead! So, she called onto Duusuu and Nooroo once more, needing some help.

She knew just what to do to give the new Ladybug their shining debut....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CAM FUN FACTS: 
> 
> He is 5'6 and Harmony is 5'7, making the girl taller
> 
> Alya is married and has a son and a daughter, but Cam doesn't know about these half siblings. 
> 
> His anxiety is based off of mine
> 
> Alya lives in New York now, and she is almost always in that that one track busy mindset, so she sometimes forgets she has a son back in Paris. It hurts Cam more when she calls him out of the blue then when she doesn't call at all, cause he's used to not hearing a word from her out of her blog, but when she does call it it really slaps him in the face on how she's across the ocean and forgets about him.


	3. Akuma

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is a little shorter then the other chapters!! Also Madame Bustier isn't going to be in this, instead the replacment is Mme. Sharpe. She will be added to Parents Day part two-to be renamed Legends Never Die Characters.

Unlike her mother, Harmony was never really late and tried all her best to stay on time for any appointment she had. That is why anybody could see her walking down the street for her school that crisp morning, on time might she add, but she wasn't alone. With her was her cousin, Willow.

Willow lived only a few streets away, at an apartment and not the boat her mother grew up on (they use that for parties and stuff, but overall their grandma was the only one who lived on it anymore.) Willow was tall, her limbs lanky. She had long blond hair that was either a huge mess or in a slouchy ponytail, like it was now. The Lavillant wore round glasses over her light blue eyes that had their own dark circles underneath them. They matched the Hawaiian shirt and pale blue overalls she adorned, along with her headphones around her neck. Rubbing her eyes, the girl turned to the her friend, whom was wearing a brown cardigan over a black shirt and white scarf, along with a daisy hair clip keeping some stray hairs from her bun out of her face.

"You excited for another year at the hell hole that is school?" she asked, grabbing a thermos from her bag and chugging half of it down. Harmony winced at this, knowing that inside the cup there must've been enough hot coffee to kill a man.

"First of all, language, second of all, you need to stop staying up so late. Your health is in trouble here!" The shorter of the two remarked, crossing her arms. Willow only shrugged, throwing out a peace sign as she finished her drink and placed it back in her bag as they walked.

"Well I'll have you know I have a perfect excuse!"

"And that is?"

"I reached level 35 in the game and I needed to beat the boss before going to bed!" The two laughed, but after a few seconds a third voice was mixed in with theirs.

Suddenly, someone landed right in front of them, and it was definitely an akuma. He had on a large cape that went down to his ankles, it was black on the outside but a galaxy on the inside. Along with a black outfit full of leather straps and chains, high boots and dark makeup. Whoever this was definitely had a thing for leather.

With eyeliner sharp enough to stab somebody, he turned to Willow, slashing her with a whip he had in his hands, turning to Harmony and did the same. He was maneuvering it like it was a part of his body, a separate limb of sorts. He began to laugh once more as he ran off, screaming about something with a mother.

Real quick they figured out what he meant. "U-um, Harmony?" Came the voice of Willow. "What am I doing in my daughter's body?"

"Auntie Juleka?" Harmony asked, the person making Willow shake her head.

"Wait, Auntie Rose?" She nodded and Willows face got pale, Harmony realizing that the akuma was probably a body switching one.

"I-I uh, I should go, get um, get help! Because his power doesn't work on me! Yeah, I-I'll see you later Auntie Rose!" With a flimsy excuse that would make even her mother cringe, Harmony ran off, heading straight for an alley that was conveniently nearby. She took a deep breath and leaned against the wall when she made it, heart pounding for what she was going to do.

"You ready?" Tikki asked, flying out of her cardigan pocket. Swallowing her fear and ignoring it, not the first time she's done that, she nodded.

"Yeah, totally! Let's make Mom proud," she said through clenched teeth. She was not ready, she was so, so, so, not ready. But if she said that, what would Tikki think? She couldn't do that to her, and plus, the other Ladybug's might've felt the same and maybe even worse! She was perfectly able on doing this.

* * *

Cam wasn't at Adrien's house when he saw him. The akuma. His long whip was terrifying, hitting all those it came across. For most he left a mark, others were just left confused, but the teen didn't want to risk that. So, he stayed where he was in his fathers house, curled up and laying on his bed, only watching from the window.

He stumbled to take out his phone from his back pocket, opening the chat between both Adrien and his father.

_**Hey, where are you guys theres a akuma** _

When they didn't respond right away Cam felt his anxiety sky rocket higher and higher.

_**Hey he seems scary where are you guys are you** _

_**two okay** _

_**hello????** _

Finally after what felt like an eternity he got a message back, but it only doused him in guilt.

_**No need to worry bud, Ade was with me. He's gone for cover dude and i was helping some people get some as well. ill be home soon** _

Of course his father was helping people, it's what he did. His first instinct was to save, whereas his sons was to run away and hide. He felt the shame boil him alive, like he was being dunked into a vat of steaming black ink. He was supposed to be helping people like he was taught, but he was a coward. _He was such a coward._

A ding brought his mind out of the self deprecating gutter and he saw a private message from the one who was just with his father.

_**wish me luck** _

Another ding.

_**im going to need it** _

Cam gulped and jumped up when he heard his front door open, racing into his fathers arms without a moments hesitation. They stayed like that for the rest of the attack, simply holding each other and hoping each second that the akuma won't break into their house. 

* * *

Harmony- Dame Rouge-flew about Paris...as well as she could. The flying stuff was hard, and the night she tried it out for the first time was good, but now? Now she just plain out sucked. Maybe it was nerves, or maybe it was because she was in broad daylight, but no matter what it was she was bad.

The yo-yo wasn't doing what she wanted it to do, not wrapping around the objects she needed it to, unraveling all of the string and making her almost hit the ground...it was a thing. So, the girl opted to walk to the akuma instead, ignoring all the people gawking her as she passed by. It did take her some time, but she finally make it to the akuma, who had his back turned on her.

Taking control of the situation, Dame Rouge wrapped her yo-yo back around her waist, not wanting to touch it in massive frustration ever again.

"Look, akuma, I don't know what happened, but maybe we can talk things out? There is no need to drag innocent people-AAA-" With one solid movement, Dame Rouge was swept off her feet by a black blur with cat ears, making sure she was far away from the whip that was swinging towards her. It looked like the akuma's trap was to reel her in and then strike her when she was off guard, clever.

She was placed carefully atop a rooftop, shaking a little with adrenaline. Chat Noir was standing in front of her, he was more muscular in person then he was on those blogs and TV's.

"What were you thinking?" He asked, it coming out in more of a demand then insult. "Akuma's don't know how to just talk. All they know is fight."

"How do you know that?" Dame Rouge countered. "Sometimes all a person needs to do is talk things out!"

Chat Noir only shrugged. "I'm sure you're right, but like I said, these akuma's don't know what they're doing. All they know is what whoever the new Hawkmoth is telling them what to do." At that exact moment the dreaded black whip flew up and grabbed Chat by his ankle, throwing him from the rooftop into a different building across the way. He fell to the ground, clutching at his ribs.

"ARE YOU OKAY?!" Dame Rouge screamed, worried for the hero. If he didn't have the miraculous, he would've died!

"HEY! LADYBUG HERO! GET YOURSELF AWAY FROM HERE!," the adult screamed, and then muttered something along the lines of "boy am I rusty."

"MY NAME IS DAME ROUGE!"

"IT DOESN'T MATTER! GET YOURSELF OUT OF DANGER!" Taking the older's advice, Dame did just that, throwing her yo-yo and leaping off the building.

The problem with that was, she had no control over this weapon. The new hero began to scream as she fell down flight after flight, her yo-yo mid air as it only bounced off the thing she was aiming to fly off of. If the akuma didn't wrap his whip around her waist she would've kept on flying, unfortunately that save came with a cost, as she was then whammed into Chat Noir, who was just finally getting up.

They groaned, Dame Rouge rubbing the top of her head. They both laid there, Dame not being able to get up because of the whip weighing her down, and Chat because there was a 16 year old lying on top of him.

The teen tried to shift, but only managed to get the whip squeezed tighter around her waist. As the two squirmed to try and get free, the akuma began to talk.

"Now, everyone is going to know what it feels like to be compared to their mother all the time! Nobody can escape the wrath of-" Suddenly, his voice as sharp as nails stopped and a mask like a smoother version of the Hawkmoth symbol appeared on his face. He growled before nodding, blinked a few times, and a sinister smile grew on his face.

"Hello heroes," he said, but he sounded...different. More...smooth and suave if that made sense. "I am Menteuse, the new Hawkmoth!" The akuma slowly moved forward, heading straight for the miraculous owners

"Heroes ruined my childhood! They kept me from the one I loved, they turned my classmates against me! So when I heard that Ladybug is back, I was enraged. Now, I will make it my mission like the one before me to ruin you!" Menteuse made the whip tighter, nearly making Dame Rouge turn blue as it was becoming harder and harder to breath.

"Except I won't steal your miraculous, no, I will be making some much more drastic changes. Like," Menteuse used her vice to lean down and whisper breathily into the girls ear. "Killing you."

"CATACLYSM!"

"NO!"

In one swift move the cat hero wiggled his hand out from underneath his new partner and grasped at the whip, causing it to crumble and break. Dame Rouge took a deep breath and hacked, scrambling to get off Chat.

Menteuse began to angerly yell out, calling the heroes useless, idiots, names that if said would make the fic rating change to explicit. Chat Noir only sighed as he turned to the girl who was wheezing on the ground.

"Call your lucky charm and then Miraculous Ladybug, we don't have any time for this," he said rolling his eyes at the akuma. Dame Rouge nodded and carefully stood up, grabbing her yo-yo and throwing it up in the air.

"Lucky Charm!" She yelled out, getting a plate with a frowny face in response.

"Yes I know I disappointed hundreds of people, you don't have to rub it in," she muttered under her breath, making sure nobody else heard her. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

Ladybugs flew around them all, turning everything back right again. Where the leather akuma once stood was a teen boy. He had short, messy black hair and a leather jacket. His blazing blue eyes scanned the crowd that had gathered to watch the fight, before grabbing the drumstick that was on the ground, the one that used to be suffocating Dame Rouge only minutes ago. He got up and ran off, based on his looks probably to school.

Dame gasped as she realized she had somewhere to be as well, turning around to leave. She was stopped as someone grabbed her wrist, nearly popping her arm out of it's socket.

"You will meet me at 5:00 tonight at the Agreste mansion gates," Chat Noir said, it coming out more like a threat; his green eyes glaring at the girl as he let go. She nodded and ran off once more, running straight into the ally way she transformed in to detransform in.

With a deep breath she said the words, feeling her tense shoulders finally fall as Tikki flew out and in front of her face.

"That was a start!" She tried to encourage. "How're you feeling?"

_Terrible, cruddy, a humiliation, like I'm letting so many people down._

"Fine! Yeah it was a...start! I should get to school though, feel free to have any of the snacks in my bag!" Quickly, once Tikki was settled and gnawing on a strawberry, Harmony ran to class, hoping she wasn't late. 

* * *

Never in her life had this girl been so happy for an akuma attack, as it cut back the time for anybody to be classified as late. Meaning that Harmony was fine, minus her bruises and disappointment, but at least she wasn't late! Pausing in the doorway to her classroom, the teen stared to take everything in.

Willow was sitting in the back, alone, her feet propped up on a desk as she was playing some game on her phone. In front of her was a girl with wavy hair doodling on a notepad. There was clicking coming from a bench near the front were a redhead was playing with a cube with buttons on it, the person sitting next to him coloring something in with a purple pencil. There was somebody else in the back with glasses, but she didn't get to see who it was as someone banged into her on the way in.

A small squeak of a sorry came from the girl that was behind the boy who rammed into her. Glancing up, Harmony's jaw dropped when she saw who it was. It was the boy who was akumatized that morning.

He hadn't changed, except his face was now hard and solid as a rock, even if it turned a little pink because all of the eyes on him. The only person who looked like they didn't care was the girl who was coloring with the pencil. In fact, she looked indifferent and a little...emotionless?

"What was it like to be akumatized?" Spouted the redhead that had the cube, curiosity basically coming off him in waves.

Suddenly kids from all around the class room got up and began to flock the boy and his friend, asking questions and getting into his personal space. The teen grimaced and almost seemed to growl, but it was more for show then anything.

With protective instincts kicking in, Harmony shouldered through the tiny crowd and grabbed the boy by his wrist. He resisted at first but his friend grabbed the other. Together both girls dragged him away from the situation. They stopped when they were a few feet away from the class, standing in the hallway together. The boy sat down on the floor and crossed his arms, trying to seem mad or tough, but his glaring eyes gave away how relieved he really felt. 

The girl he was with sat down next to him and gestured for Harmony to do the same, the three in a triangle of sorts. The girl had long red hair with a purple bow clipped onto the side of her head; her prominent freckles looking like stars. She had on a light blue shirt and a lavender skirt that fell to her knees, black leggings tying the whole look together.

She took the boy's hand and squeezed it, him looking over to her. They seemed to share a whole conversation without speaking a word and immediately the leather wearing one's features softened a little and he rolled his eyes, turning to Harmony. He stuck is hand out to her, fingernails painted black.

"I'm Micah Kubdel and this is my friend Kit Anciel-Kurtzburg, who are you?" He said, maybe not in the nicest way, but he was talking to her!

"I'm Harmony Couffine, nice to meet you," she responded, shaking the hand.

"Thank you for helping Micah back there! He get's overwhelmed easily, even if he doesn't like to show it!" Kit remarked with a giggle, earning a small punch in the shoulder from her friend. It was all for show, so it didn't hurt at all. 

"Anyway, we should head back in, I think everyone's calmed down a little," the brunette said after a little while. Micah nodded and stood back up quickly, speed walking into the classroom with his hands in his pockets. Kit only smiled wide and shook her head.

"You get used to him, trust me. It was nice to meet you Harmony!" she entered the class as well, following after the teen. Harmony nodded as she too took her turn inside and went to sit next to Willow.

"Welcome class," their teacher, Mme. Sharpe, started as she strode into the room. "That was certainly a way to start out the year, an akuma of all things. Let's hope it won't happen again."

_Yeah_ , Harmony thought. _Let's hope..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More about Micah and Kit! You get to hear more about Willow in later chapters ;)
> 
> Micah: 
> 
> He is Gay (Harmony is straight and Cam is Pansexual)
> 
> ABSOLUTLY HATES BEING COMPARED TO HIS MOTHER (Alix) and doesn't know who his father is
> 
> Micah is 5'5"
> 
> He owns a drum set, but can also play the acoustic guitar. His theme song is "I'm Still Here" from Treasure Planet.
> 
> Kit: 
> 
> She is straight, but asexual
> 
> She LOVES bunnies, but is allergic to them
> 
> She is 5'5"
> 
> She and Micah are childhood friends, introduced by their parents. 
> 
> She reminds me of Rose ngl...though, Kit is named after my friend Kit from a nathmarc discord server!! Kit is a wonderful person and I hope she likes the character named after her!


	4. Into The Unknown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time to meet someone new

At 4:55 Harmony set out to the Agreste gates, Chat Noir waiting there for her. He didn't really stand out against the night, but she could see him anyway.

"Dame Rouge? Is that you?" Chat Noir asked, staring at the girl who had transformed only minutes ago. Dame nodded and walked up to the hero, staring up at him.

"Yeah, I'm here!" She said. "What's going on?"

"Follow me," and he led her into the mansion, Chat leading her to the room that used to be Hawkmoth's layer. It seemed to be fixed up from the final fight, it wasn't perfect, but it was something.

There were couches and bean bag chairs littered all over the room. On one side there was bookshelves full of random books, but also history books, ones about the miraculous, and recipes as well!

There was a couple of white boards, chalk boards, and pin boards with pictures and newspaper articles stuck on them lining the walls, along with supplies like yarn, pencils, markers, and more. On the other side there were more health materials then anything, like a fridge full of ice packs and bottles of water. Medicine cabinets with bandages, painkillers, cream, just things to help with injuries.

"Take a seat," the adult offered, sitting down himself in a chair with cat ears. "We need to have a serious talk." Dame took a seat across from him, plopping down in a purple bean bag chair, sinking in more then she thought she would've.

"Look, you are obviously only in high school, and I remember being a hero at your age." His new partner nodded, yet she was confused on where this was going.

"Everything is only going to be hard, extremely hard, and I-I-" he seemed to be searching for something to say, or some way to word it, but he ended up giving up. He simply rubbed his temples and started over.

"Plagg claws out," with a whoosh his hero outfit fell away and in Chat Noir's place was Adrien Agreste. Dame Rouge gasped, never suspecting that out of all the reasons she was there, it was to see who Chat was all these years. Adrien? The model? She never would have known!

The kwami, who was apparently named Plagg, flocked over to a small corner of the room-which was like a mini version of the place they were currently in, stocked with cheese, cookies, and more for the Kwamis to eat. It was _insanely_ adorable.

"Dame Rouge, I'm not going to pressure you to do what you don't want you, but I would encourage you to reveal yourself as well. Knowing who you are can help me write excuses for you when you have hero duties, to help train you, and more. If you say no, then at least think about it, okay?"

"Okay," she responded, taking a second to think before deciding. It was all pretty sensible, and it would only work out in the end, right? She really had nothing to lose. "Tikki, spots off."

She detransformed and watched as Tikki went over to Plagg, starting up some friendly banter and teasing. Adrien teared up when he saw the one and only Harmony Couffine sitting where the new hero once was.

"I was friends with your mother, back in the day," he said, moving his chair so he was closer. "She was a real nice person..." They both sat in silence together, taking a second to honor the woman.

After a few minutes Adrien stood up and wrapped his hair into a ponytail, gesturing to a printed title of an online newspaper that was pinned on one of the boards. In big bold letters the headline was "HEROES OF PARIS BACK!" but the words in smaller print underneath them made the younger cringe. "The heroes are back! But does this 'Dame Rouge' know what she's doing?"

"Wow, reporters can be ruthless, huh?" Harmony muttered, rubbing the back of her head awkwardly. Adrien nodded and crossed his arms.

"Being a hero is tough, I wasn't as awesome as I was today right away your age," he said, heading over to the bookshelves and pretending to browse their spines. "Which is why I want to train you, show you how to use your powers, how to make up a plan, have it so you can be able to fly with your yo-yo, and more." 

Adrien stopped and leaned up against the wall.

"And I can make it look like you're under training with me, because this room is in my mansion after all." Harmony thought about it, and she loved the idea, but there was one flaw.

"Um, I really don't like working in fashion or modelling, and those are the things you're most known for. If we were to make up an excuse for me to have a reason to skip events to work with you, then it has to be recognizable as your brand. What will my excuse be then?"

"...You're right," the adult made a full circle and fell back into his chair, eyes furrowed for how hard he was thinking. "Well, what are the things you do like?"

"Baking, crafts, embroidery and stitching-"

"There! That's it!"

"What?" 

"Stitching!" Adrien seemed all too excited for one word. "You can say that you're helping me with embroider designs in a clothing line commemorating the new heroes!"

Harmony agreed and the two kept talking into the night, the girl finally going home around seven, exhausted from all she had learned and trained already. She had some new tricks and tips for the next battle, which hopefully wouldn't be soon, but she would be ready for it if it should come!

Quietly, she entered her home, hoping that her father would be awake so she could say goodnight. She grinned when she caught him heading into his room, and in a spontaneous decision, ran forward and engulfed him into a hug. He stiffened before returning it, still a little awkward.

"What's got you so happy?" He asked, tone a little odd. He wasn't asking in a nice and content voice, no, he seemed more numb and depressed. Maybe a little...pissed off? On edge?

"I was talking with Adrien Agreste and he's letting me help him with a future fashion line! Isn't that cool?" Harmony asked. Luka nodded curtly once. He muttered something his daughter couldn't hear and he separated, turning towards his room and entering it, leaving with a small "Love you, goodnight."

The exchanged left Harmony confused, and maybe a little hurt. Why was he so...mad at her? Sad about something? What was wrong?

She sighed and climbed up the stairs to her own room, going up to her bed and staring at the ceiling. Tikki flew out of her pocket and gently laid down on the pillow right next to her holders head. The girl moved her arm so she was petting the kwami, the two falling asleep in that position.

Harmony went on to dream about the past Ladybugs, and her mother as well, and would wake up with her tears still in her eyes. 

* * *

Nina Bruel procrastinates. It's her go to thing-don't start the assignment until the day of it's deadline...which is why she was frantically running around her house one morning. She was racing to grab all that she needed, while also trying to get her homework from the night before done.

Running down the stairs from her room, the girl grabbed an apple to eat on the go and was about to race out the door when her father stopped her.

"Nina," he said, loud and proud. "What are you forgetting?" Panicked, the teen mentally ran through a checklist, trying to figure out what she could've missed, when suddenly Ivan leaned down and wrapped his arms around her. Happily, his daughter welcomed the embrace.

Even though Ivan was her dad, she got most of her looks from her mom, Mylene. Nina was on the shorter side of the scale, though she was in between her parents. She was a little bigger, some would classify her as chubby, but she loved her bigger hips and thighs! The sixteen year old's hair was cut short and wavy, the darker brown color coming from her Dad.

She wore a teal sweater that morning with chunky yellow earrings. That, along with light blue jeans sprinkled with glitter, made the whole thing one of her favorite outfits! Soon the parent-daughter duo let go, giving quick goodbyes to both her parents before she ran out the door.

Her maroon eyes were wide as she went over the paper she was supposed to do the night before, wincing when she noticed a back side she hadn't realized. The rest of the way to school was filled with distraught pencil movements and messy hand writing; don't forget dread for what her teacher was going to say.

The brunette cheered when she made it into class on time, taking her seat in front of the girls she learned were named Willow and Harmony a few days ago. Finally she relaxed after what felt like a hundred years, taking out a notebook and doodling on the side of the paper. She was like this for most of the class, that is, until her teacher decided that she was going to collect the homework.

Slowly she moved up the stands, reaching over and grabbing it off of each student's bench. Finally she made it to the girl in question, sliding the paper out of her hands. Nina couldn't even look at her as she examined her answers. Mme. Sharpe shook her head and finished collecting. Once she made her way to the front of the room, glaring at her students with her cold green eyes, she landed on Nina.

Mme. Sharpe was the new teacher at their school, ever since Mme. Bustier quit to be a stay at home mom. She had dark skin and long curly hair that was usually in a ponytail. She never needed to wear makeup, as she was beautiful already, and she wore that with pride (along with the badge for being stern, yet loving at the same time).

"I know it's only the first week of school, but I will not tolerate this mess," she crossed her arms and stood tall. "Nina Bruel, please stand up if you will." Gulping, she did so, turning red as the class's eyes landed on her. Mme. Sharpe never faltered, keeping her intimidating gaze locked.

"Nina, your work was a disgrace. Messy hand writing, and half the answers that I could see were wrong. Please answer me this, when did you start the assignment?"

"Uh-Um, this morning..." she squeaked out.

"Nina, procrastinating is a habit that is hard to break, and it is one that will not benefit you in anyway. I am disappointed," she turned to the rest of the class. "Would anybody be willing to tutor Mademoiselle Bruel from here in, making sure she doesn't mess up as much as she did today?"

The humiliation was filling the girl up fast, embarrassed that this was happening. She had never had this problem before, and the fact that it was one now made her feel ashamed of herself. The rest of the class went by in a blur, Nina not really paying attention to much of any of it, not caring who volunteered to try and help her. By the time the bell rang the teen more then rushed to grab her stuff, head down as she ran out of class with a crimson face with tears threatening to overflow.

Mme. Sharpe watched her students leave, feeling a small pang in her heart as she watched the one she lectured speed walk away with hurt evident on her face. The older woman knew that some of the things she did were harsh, and with the help of her wife she was learning what was and wasn't, and this time she may have gone too far. Reluctantly, she reached out and tapped one of her students on the shoulder, Harmony she thought her name was.

"Will you please go and check on Nina? I would hate to see her akumatized," she asked, watching as the girl nodded and ran ahead of the two girls and boy she was talking with.

Meanwhile, the gal in question had escaped to the bathroom, staring at herself in the mirror. The water works were in full swing, finally coming down after holding it in all class. She was humiliated, embarrassed, ashamed! It's not like she wants to procrastinate, it just happens! It was a hard habit to break, Mme. Sharpe was right about that, but she just wished that everybody knew how she felt right then. Being called out in front of the whole class.

She didn't hear the flapping come her way, in fact, she never knew she wasn't alone until a butterfly caught her highlighter, turning it a particular shade of deep purple.

"Voir Mur, I am Menteuse, but I'm sure you know me by now!" Came the sweet voice of the villain behind the scenes. Nina felt all her humiliation and anger rise as the woman began to explain to her her powers. "When you procrastinate, it feels like you hit a brick wall, something that overwhelms you and makes it feel like you can't breathe...like the ocean. Well, now I will give you the power to make everyone do just that, listen closely." 

* * *

Harmony searched throughout the school for Nina, leaving the bathroom for last. Oh how she wished that was the first place she checked, as when she walked in she saw something that would've been preventable. In place of Nina Bruel there was an akuma, a very angry akuma.

She had on a pink leotard with shiny black boots that went up to her knees. White gloves went up to her elbows and a tiny crown hovered just above her short hair (that didn't change). But, the biggest outfit change was the hoop skirt that was around her waist and fell to her ankles. From the front there was strips of fabric, making a cage, and then the rest of the back was thick black material. Around her neck was medici collar, white and laced. The akuma turned to stare at Harmony, now noticing that she was in the bathroom.

Her makeup was stark white, eyeliner sharp and bringing out her red eyes. Her lips were a dark black, almost like a plum. She growled, and using the large staff in her hand (that really looked like a pointy magnifying glass) she put the glass part up to the light, making a strong beam fly down and hit Harmony in the chest. It was almost like when putting up the magnifying glass to the sun to burn ants or whatever was on the ground.

It didn't hurt and it didn't make her under the akuma's control, but it did leave a large black dot in the middle of her clothing. She was confused and the akuma flew over to her getting right in the middle of her face.

"Tell them all that Voir Mur is coming," and with that she flew out of the bathroom, not even bothering to say goodbye.

"That was...weird," Harmony muttered, only realizing what was going on when Tikki appeared in front of her face. "Oh right! I'm the one who needs to save Paris!"

Quickly, the teen turned around to try and hide in a stall in case anybody ran into the bathroom while she was transforming, but was hit with a sudden awakening on who she was working with. _She couldn't breathe_. She tried to run but it felt like she hit a brick wall, only moving a couple of steps per minute, and with every second she tried to move her breathing restricted more and more. Stopping immediately, Harmony wheezed, not sure why the akuma's powers were the way they were or if there was any loophole around them.

"Crud!" She cried, feeling frustration well up in her chest. She hadn't even transformed yet, and already she could feel that she disappointed so many people once more. She was never going to be able to fill her role in protecting Paris, was she? Shaking, she cleared that last thought away from her head, she could address that later, but now she had a city to save. She crossed her fingers in hopes that nobody came in to see her.

"Tikki! It's now or never!" Harmony was able to transform, so in the back of Dame Rouge's head, she noted that the breathing and invisible wall might only be when she walks. Grunting, the girl turned around and headed for the door, needing to stop more then she would like to to breath, it was like she was being dunked under water.

Slowly, very, very, very slowly, Dame made it out of the bathroom to look upon so many children her age-and older-walking like there was an invisible wall getting in their way. It hurt her to see all of those people struggling, she was the one meant to save them! Her mother would've done so already! Taking her yo-yo with reluctance, she flung it forward, watching as it actually wrapped around the object she was aiming for.

Suddenly giddy, the training really was working, she flew out of the school and towards the akuma buildings away. The wind in her hair was invigorating, a freeing feeling from the world where she was their savior....or something like that. It wasn't long until the teen made it to the rooftop where Chat Noir was perched, watching Voir Mur with his green eyes like a predator watching it's prey.

"Her powers are interesting," he said, acknowledging the younger. "People are walking slower, and they seem to be taking each step and then nearly turning blue..."

"It feels like you're in really dense water, you can't breathe, and it's insanely hard to walk as well," The adult sighed when he heard that, turning to look at her.

"You got hit didn't you?"

"Yeah, patient zero over here!" She mumbled sarcastically, but still in a cheerful way. Chat wrapped his arm around her shoulder in a half hug, and she could see that it was because he was worried about her. She wanted to tell him that she was all right, that he definitely had no reason to be scared for her, but Voir Mur had other plans.

Vaguely, Dame Rouge could hear the akuma's laughter, but she really didn't process what was going on until Chat's face turned shock ridden and he pushed her out of the way, getting hit with the magnifying glass like it was a baseball bat. The hero fell from the building, using his staff last minute to break his fall. Guilt wracked through the shorter's body, that was meant for her and she let her own partner take it! How much of an idiot was she?

Quickly she flung her yo-yo and leapt off the building, beaming in relief because this time she knew she wouldn't free fall like last time. She landed a few feet away from Chat, watching as he was hit with the beam; instinctively she tried to run over to him, but stopped when she hit the wall and stopped breathing. They were both stuck where they were, unless they wanted to nearly suffocate.

Voir Mur began to cackle watching the hero's struggle. Flying down to the younger of the two to begin her attack. She managed to do some damage, punching her in the face, and grinned a sick and twisted smile as Dame Rouge fell. Before the hero was able to get away she was kicked when she was down, quite literally. Right after another it was bruise after bruise until Chat launched his staff at the akuma, successfully getting her away from the other girl.

Taking a second to gather her barings Dame shakily got back up to her feet, doubled over with a hand on her ribs. Everything hurt, to put it nicely. This was more pain then when she was sore the day after the first attack! If it sucked this much just to be beat up, then what was it like being thrown into a building? Across Paris? This must've been nothing compared to what Chat had gone through.... Taking a deep breath she took her weapon once more, calling onto her-

"LUCKY CHARM!" She got....roller skates? They were unlike she had seen before, turtle themed with small flippers on the side. So cute!

"Dame!" Chat cried, a little closer to her now thanks to the small baby steps he was taking. This whole time he had been trying to keep Voir Mur away from the younger using his baton. "Remember that you're in the middle of a fight! Come up with a plan!"

"Think, think, think, think!" the ladybug themed hero muttered, wracking her brain for anything she could use these blades for. She tried going back to other fights her mother had when she was younger. What would she be able to use this for? There was a turtle miraculous right? And the item was turtle skates? Maybe they need some help?

"I have an idea I think," she faltered, hesitating before going airborne towards the Agreste residence. One of their sessions she was asked to bring the miraculous box and to keep it in the training room where they revealed themselves to each other, so she knew right were it was. Harmony slipped into space pretty easily, swinging in next to the box so she could waste no time in opening it. Dame Rouge snatched the bracelet, but just stood in the room when she realized she hit a roadblock.

Who would she give it to? Nobody really stood out to her when she thought about her friends, who would be a great hero? The red and black hero would pace if she was able too, and yet it wouldn't help either way. Finally, she made up her mind, leaving the through the window she came.

* * *

It was hard to find Micah at first, having not knowing his address, and it was pure coincidence that she spotted him sitting on a windowsill from the building to which was assumed to be his apartment. She managed to blow through without hitting him in the process, although, she did wham into the wall because of her momentum. God, she was not used to this.

Dusting herself off she whipped around, holding the miraculous out to her friend.

"Ladybu-Dame Rouge?" Micah corrected, in shock in meeting the hero. It was the first time Harmony-hero or civilian- had seen the boy so excited. It was like he had stars in his eyes...it was amazing how easy he let his guard down.

"Micah Kubdel, will you please take the turtle miraculous to help me and Chat Noir in defeating Voir Mur?" She asked. At first, he just stood there, not really sure what to do. Then, he cleared his throat and straightened up, placing the jewelry around his wrist.

"Yeah-yeah of, of course," he stuttered. A bright light came from the miraculous and the kwami appeared.

"I am Wayzz, your kwami," the light green creature greeted, landing on top of Micah's cupped hands. His eyes seemed to light up at the cutie as he was instructed what to do, and how to do it.

"I won't let anybody down," he smiled, genuine and wide, an expression that Dame had also never seen before. "Wayzz, It's time to shell up!"

* * *

Chat Noir was counting down every second until Dame Rouge came back, he could only hold his own with his weapon for so long. He had faith in Harmony, and he hoped she knew what she was doing. That's why when she came back with a new hero in tow he was beaming with pride. She was becoming a full fledged hero, and he couldn't be happier.

"You heroes really are stupid aren't you?" Voir Mur exclaimed, towering over her victims. "Now, you've only given me more people to crush!"

"Quick, before she catches you as well!" Chat called to the new hero. "Call your shellter!"

Micah froze before stumbling for the shield on his back, which looked like the shell of a Painted Turtle. Thinking quick, Dame Rouge threw her yo-yo and it wrapped around Chat, drawing him towards the other two right as the dome fell down to protect them. The three took a second to breathe; a break most needed.

"So," Chat started. "What's your name?"

Micah thought for a second before grinning.

"My name is Coquille, it's an honor to meet you!" He said, showing a much more open part of himself. For the couple of weeks that Harmony had known Micah, she learned bits and pieces of who he was, like how he hated being compared to his mother. Alix was tough and sporty as a teen, and friends and family compared her son to her, and it really got on his nerves...it was the reason he was akumatized! Of course, he didn't say it all out loud.

He hated getting emotional, purely for the fact that his mother wasn't, so he felt like he should as well. Harmony had a feeling there was much more emotion he had that he was dying to share. She thought maybe being a hero might be different for him. There was nobody to be compared to, maybe Carapace, but that was a stretch, so he was able to show who he really was. Of course, it started with the outfit.

Usually Micah wore dark clothes, like his leather jacket and dark jeans with black tees. He even dyes his hair black on a monthly basis! But as Coquille his outfit changed, of course it still had black, but he expanded his horizon for others colors. He had in a puffy type crop top that had 3D cracks inside of it to imitate a turtle shell. He had it surrounding his forearms as well, like big and thick shamrock colored bracelet

Coquille adorned long and loose basketball shorts that went down to his knees. They were a darker green then the puffy shirt, like a forest green, but on its sides was the same pattern like the arm bands. There was a thick brown belt at his hips keeping the shorts aloft and underneath it all was a black bodysuit, covering nearly all of his skin. On his face was a mask just like the girls, it was all black, except for the shell pattern on the side of it, which was gold. Coquille had high topped sneakers, they went up to engulf his shins with little flaps coming off to look like flippers. It was inspecting these shoes that Dame Rouge realized she knew what to do.

"Guys! I have an idea!" the female hero said, turning to the others.

"Good, I don't think I can hold this base for much longer," Coquille responded, sweat forming on his brow for having to not only hold up the shield half his body size, but also from taking the hits to said shield that their enemy was dishing. Voir Mur was not giving up, even if a dome was in the way. The two listened to Dame's plan as closely as they could, nodding in agreement.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Chat asked, not questioning the plan, but just double checking.

"It has too, but if I slip up that's were you come in."

"I can't hold this up for much longer," Coquille grunted, arms shaking under the weight.

"Okay, then let your guard down," she responded, meaningfully. "If this doesn't work, then we'll keep trying until it does." Something in the other eyes seemed to click, and he nodded, more determined them before.

"On the count of three," Chat started. "One, two, THREE!"

Their shield went down, and in that moment, Dame Rouge pushed her friend forward, since the turtle hero now had on the lucky charmed skates. She had slipped them on him while he was holding the one thing protecting them from dying. He flew forward, and the plan was to skate by and grab the akumatized weapon out of the akuma's hand, but some things did go a little wrong....

Coquille zoomed right passed the akuma, just barely avoiding getting hit with her powerful and deadly beams. Frantic, the girl used her yo-yo and wrapped it around the third member of the party, flinging him back around, only to miss the akuma again! It was like they were playing in real life pinball machine. With a big swing, Chat Noir whammed into the puffy armor type shirt the newest hero was wearing, the final blow needed as he was finally able to grab the staff and throw it back to the only adult.

"Cataclysm!" He cried, catching the object in said powered up hand while Vuir Mur was shouting obscenities as loud as she could. A purple butterfly appeared from the ashes and began to fly away, gaining the attention of the one who was supposed to catch it.

"You're not getting away that easily little troublemaker!" Dame cried, capturing the insect in the head of her yo-yo, only to set it free a few seconds later, purified. "Goodbye, you're finally set free."

A rolling sound came from the ground and looking down she saw the turtle roller skates sitting gently where they were. Looking up, Harmony waved a little at Coquille as a thanks for sending them her way, before throwing them up into the air. She would take back the bracelet later, but at least she knew there was someone there to lean on.

"MIRACULOUS LADYBUG!" 

* * *

The next day Harmony checked in on Nina at school, she was her tutor after all. They met up at the library, and the girl found her student sitting in the corner reading a book about history, most likely the chapter they were assigned.

"Hi Nina!" Harmony greeted, sitting down next to her. She smiled and she smiled back, going back to reading her book. They had established before that these sessions would just be for catching homework and doing it on time, and sometimes more people would join in.

"Hiya!" Came the voice of another friend. Kit was welcomed at the table along with Willow and Micah, but what the guy was wearing made the other do a double take.

His leather jacket was usually fully black, but on the back somebody had painted on different turtles swimming on an ocean floor, and judging by his paint stained hands Harmony assumed he had done it. It looked like a snapshot, a picture taken underwater. It was the most color he had worn in all the short time they were friends, and honestly it was nice to see him branching out.

"I like your jacket man," Willow said, who had followed her cousins gaze. "What made you step out of doom and gloom?"

Micah scowled and crossed his arms. But then he huffed before relaxing a little, mumbling an answer.

"Someone gave me some advice okay? Not that big of a deal."

"Yeah, and who's this someone?"

"I can't say...but they told me 'Let your guard down. If this doesn't work then we'll keep trying until it does'...so shut up."

As the rest of the group began to talk, Nina chiming in every once in a while, Harmony felt like her heart was going to explode. She was so proud of her friends, especially Micah. Oh how she was glad she got to meet them...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MORE ABOUT NINA:
> 
> -She is lesbian and demisexual
> 
> -She is around 5'4"
> 
> -She has an older sister and a younger brother, along with the family pet ferret named Woozle
> 
> -Her favorite animals are pigs and piglets!


	5. She Used To Be Mine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is a SUPER short chapter, just to take a break so there isn't an akuma back to back. Plus you get some insight into Luka....and a character my friend Rain made!!
> 
> Also the grieving process is hard and different for everyone, and i'm sure this isn't the most accurate. I haven't been through something this bad before, but I almost did, and am taking experience from that I have researched. Just a small disclaimer.

Luka Couffine was currently staring at his wall. It wasn't like it was a cool wall per say, just an ordinary light blue wall. Marinette had painted it after they were married, and the memory was still so vivid it was like it had happened yesterday.

The smell of the paint mixing with her perfume, her laughter in the background as she made a huge smiley face on the wall, her lips against his in a loving kiss. The thought made Luka shudder with a silent sob, turning to the side so he was facing the door. All he had to do was simply get up. Just...get dressed and go outside and bond with his daughter, that's all he had to do.

He didn't have it in him to do any of that. She was his muse, his light, his love, and she was gone. The death was sudden, and it hit him hard. Luka was hysterical, watching as she died in his arms.

It didn't really process in his mind that his wife was dead until her melody faded out, her sweet and light tone ended, and so did his happiness. He was a wreck that day, Chat Noir and Carapace had to force him off the heroine. The death of his beloved wasn't something that happened every day, thank God it didn't, but it left him a mess.

Ryuuko had gone onto her knees next to the snake themed hero, reaching out and holding his hand as tears, too, fell down her face. Chat and Carapace followed, both holding each other and Viperion as well. One by one civilians came out to honor their fallen hero, coming up behind them. They surrounded Ladybug in a semi-circle of people, everyone crying or numb in some way. It would have stayed like that if someone didn't appear in front of him.

Luka had paused when the gloved hand appeared in front of him, not expecting anybody to come forward. Bunnyx had tears going down her face like liquid sorrow, but she still gave him a small smile. Viperion took the hand and was immediately wrapped into a hug. It was shocking and, in the moment, the first thing that came to him was, "Thank you, I didn't know you did this for all the timelines."

The truth made the man hug the woman tighter, she must see death every day, but this might be worse than it all. She did end up letting go, rubbing her face. They turned around so they were facing the body like the rest of the people around them.

"It's going to get better, Viperion," she started. "I've seen timeline after timeline, and in this one? This one gets better. It may take a while, but it does, so keep your chin up." Luka only stared ahead.

"How can I go on when she's not here?"

"Because she wouldn't want you to stay and feel sad. She would want you to go on with your life, make more music, visit your mother," she lowered her voice into a whisper, "help your daughter grow up."

Stuttering, Luka took a deep breath and turned to his other side, not wanting to think about that day anymore. The heroes did fight about how to keep going, but in the end they all gave up their miraculous to the box, except Chat and Bunnyx, who kept theirs in case of an emergency. Luka rubbed his eyes, and when his blurry vision cleared the first thing he saw was his guitar, growing dust in the corner.

The last time he made a song was before the death, and it was about his wife. To this day when he would end up going out and getting groceries for him and his daughter, which wasn't something that happened as often as it should, the song would play overhead. It would take everything in him not to break down at the store, but he would finish his shopping as quick as he could before racing home.

He would bypass the bakery on his way up the stairs, the store having not been opened ever since Tom and Sabine lost their daughter and moved to the latter's fathers place, and waste no time in heading to his room. Some day's he would pass by Harmony in the kitchen, ready to put the food he had just bought away.

Harmony...she was doing well for what he knew. She was so happy all the time.... how was she so happy? It irritated him sometimes, but he was learning to control that. She was so upbeat and alive, and it reminded him of her mother.

Oh, how he wished Mari was there.

There to see his music play on loudspeakers, there to see her parents again, there to see her daughter grow up, just-...there. Tears fell like they had been for days and nights. He didn't sob as violently anymore when the wound was still fresh, but when memories popped up here and there that Luka thought were lost to time.... well that was a different story.

He tossed and turned, aching. He should be up and with his daughter. He should take a shower and get dressed. He should clean and make a proper meal instead of the pre-made ones he has been getting. He should be doing so much more then he was....

Just one step, out of bed. Just one to start with. 

Willing himself to move, he thought about Marientte. She wouldn't want him to stay in bed all the time...what would she do?

She would take him by the hand and drag him into the kitchen, that's what. She would let him watch as she began to bake cupcakes for Harmony, and sometimes she would let him help if he was up to it. So that's what he would do. He would get up.

Feeling as if his limbs were being weighed down by 1,000 pounds the adult slowly sat up, rubbing his bleary eyes. Little by little he flung his legs over the edge of the bed, grunting at the effort it took. He had no energy, yet he was going to force himself to do this anyway. Luka sighed and forced himself to get up, standing for maybe a second before he fell back down onto the bed.

"Come on," he muttered. "Do it for her. Do it for Mari...and do it for Harmony."

Once again he stood up, this time giving a small grin in triumph when he was able to. He slowly trudged his way to the door, pausing, before finally he opened it, squinting in the sudden light.

He contemplated going back, to the place he knew and was basically living for a year in, but no. He had to do this. A step in the right direction.

Luka trudged down the hall, stopping at the bathroom, the place he was looking for.

Quietly closing the door behind him, he turned on the shower faucet, stripping and getting under the steaming water. He stood there, not doing much but letting the water run down his head and body. 

It was relaxing, to take a nice and long shower after a year of short and cold ones that he would take...not as much as he should've. He had needed something to wake him up, and he thought cold was the way to do it. But this? This was a nice change of pace.

The adult wasn't in there for long, he didn't want to lose himself, and he went back to his room. He didn't shave, didn't cut his hair, but at least he got himself up and under the shower.

He went to grab his guitar, but stopped, hesitating.

Was he ready for this? To hear it's melodies again?

Before deciding Luka grabbed the instrument and sat back on his bed. He wasn't laying down this time, simply leaning up against his bed frame.

The guitar was resting against him, the position very familiar to when he was younger, serenading Mari.

On instinct his fingers drummed against the chords, making some sort of cold and harsh noise. He felt a tug at his heartstrings at it, setting down the guitar once more.

He may not be ready for the instrument yet. He may not be ready for music again, but he would take another step soon. He had to get better for both her...and Harmony.

* * *

A few days had passed and he had made slow progress. He had gotten dressed, eaten, did everything he had too but one thing...go outside.

He was able to do this, he could so do this! The mantra played in his mind over and over, gearing him up for the world. The adult shrugged on a light jacket and sneakers, pausing before he opened the door. Harmony was at school, her second day in fact.

He was expecting bright lights, loud people, but he got the opposite. It was all pleasantly quiet, nothing was too sharp and nothing was too overwhelming. Luka took a deep breath, the air was filled with a soothing aroma, and he turned to see a new tea shop a good walk away from his house.

It was called Tea/Cha, the musician chuckling humbly at the name, It was certainly interesting. It had to have been new-as he had never seen it before-and what did he have to lose?

The ravenette began his way to the tea, smiling a little as he entered the building. It had a warm and home like atmosphere, and was mostly empty, the only other people there was one man behind the counter and an old lady sitting in the corner. She was nursing a cup of the shop's specialty, focusing on something in her mind instead of the real world.

"Hello good sir," said the old man from the counter. He had on a light beanie with little peeks of raven hair peeking out of it. His smile was warm and welcoming, and it made Luka want to relax. The man also had a small amount of facial hair on his chin, but that only added to his charm, like the wrinkles around his eyes.

The man-who's name tag read Mushi Lee- moved around the counter to which he was confined and went around to his newest customer. He placed one hand on his back and gently led him to a spot near an open window, allowing the nice breeze to blow his hair out of his face.

"What would you like on this fine day?" Mushi asked with a small grin. Luka took a deep breath, this man made him want to unload everything that ever happened to him, but he held it all in.

"Whatever you recommend," he responded, getting a nod in respond. Mushi wrote something down on a small pad he kept in a pocket in his dark green apron that matched the bandanna he wore around his neck.

He went back to the back of the shop as Luka looked out the window he was at, watching birds fly passed.

It was a good day...hopefully going to be spread to a good month

* * *

It had been a nice time at Tea/Cha, Luka getting closer with with owner. He learned a little more about him, like how he had come to Paris and opened the shop as he loved tea and wished to bring it to the city. And, like Luka was learning more about Mushi, Mushi was learning more about Luka. 

Some days they would talk together when the shop wasn't busy, sharing stories of their life that-in the tea shop owner's case-they could remember. He seemed to have forgotten most of his past, but he did remember small things, like the first customer he had ever gotten in the shop. 

Today was one of those days, except it was more emotional for the younger, as the atmosphere finally got to him. That feeling he got, wanting to share his whole life story with Mushi, got to him. That's what he was doing now. 

"My wife died and I just, shut down!" He vented. He was sitting at his usual spot near the window, the owner sitting across from him and nodding along as he went on. "I couldn't step out of the house, I couldn't get out of bed, I couldn't even work to make Harmony dinner!" 

The whole time Mushi seemed to sympathize with him as he took a drink of his own tea, still listening and paying attention. 

"And Harmony..." he paused. The adult sighed and shook his head. "I feel so bad...she's so happy and she's so up beat and it's like she never even got hit with the death of her one and only mother!" 

Irritation laced into his voice, yet only a small hint of it was to his daughter. A lot more of it was to himself, to the world too, but in general it was all just...irritation and guilt. He kept going, but later stopped venting, the older man taking this as a sign to give his thoughts. 

"You've been steeping in these feelings for too long, and become chained down by the bitterness." Mushi had a seat at the chair opposite Luka, resting his hands in his lap. "When tea has brewed too long, there's no way to fix it. No matter how hard you try to mask the taste or hide it away, the bitterness remains. And the longer you spend obsessing over that single cup, the less time you have to savor another."

Mushi's eyes lowered down to the cup of tea in Luka's hand. "It's a harsh reminder. Life doesn't always give us a second chance."

He paused, looking out the open window as a light breeze gently blew the cerulean-tipped hair off his client's face. "But you can still treasure what you have."

Luka looked out the window as well, however, he he caught a glance at his watch and decided that he should head home before night fell. He took a deep breath and took this as his time to leave. He stood up and thanked his friend, reaching to take out the wallet, but was stopped by the other shaking his hand softly. 

"It's my treat this time, I've appreciated your company each time you visit. You should bring your daughter sometime, Harmony, was it?" With a nod he kept going "She sounds strong. You're very lucky to have her in your life."

Luka nodded, giving a small smile. 

"Yeah, I really am."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mushi is my friend Rain's character that he vamped up for Legends Never Die!! It's been an honor talking with him about this universe and character! And...maybe there's more to Mushi Lee that meets the eye....
> 
> Also that last part with Luka and Mushi was mostly made by Rain once more! I have no clue what I would do without him helping me-


	6. That Distant Shore

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: The word r*tard is used multiple times as a way to insult someone with ADHD here. Read at your own risk. 
> 
> ALSO I myself do not have ADHD, but I have friends who do and i was given advice from them. So, I jsut wanted to say thank you to Nyx, Kit, Fruit, Meredith and everyone else for helping me with Ivy and giving me a lot of advice on how to write him not only in this chapter but in others as well.

Things were pretty chill for a couple of days...well....akuma wise. No, that was a lie. The akuma's were becoming more and more difficult, and with that Harmony now knew the feeling of being thrown across Paris. Every ounce of her was sore every hour of the day, making her more snippy and more able to saying something she may regret.

That meant when arrived to school that morning and a classmate walked up to her, she was irritated. She just wanted to make it to her seat and rest for a few minutes, was that too much to ask?

"Hello!" He had announced, placing himself right smack in her way. She recognized him as Ivy Tsuguri and with him was his sister Julien Tsuguri.

The first twin had bright red hair from his mother, the top layer up in a puffy and small ponytail while the rest was down. He had wide brown eyes that always seemed either zoned out or thinking about too many things at once, along with tan skin and freckles all over his face like sprinkles, something that he and him and his sister shared.

Julien had hair like her other mother, blue and short. It was in a long bob with hair clips keeping one side out of her line of vision. Her own eyes where green and serious, always in the moment and concentrating on anything they could. She was definitely the less energetic of them both, rarely ever seen crack a smirk nevertheless a smile at all. Harmony was sure she had emotions, but right now she was too tired to search for any in the girl's face. 

Their outfits were a stark contrast as well, Julien wearing a purple button up with plain black pants and then Ivy wearing a checkered flannel with shorts and a bright pink shirt. The boy was shifting his weight from his heels to the front of his foot, rocking back and forth over and over. His eyes were staring at the Harmony's hair clip, lost in his own world, and he would've been until Julien poked him in the shoulder. She was completely poker face the whole time.

"Oh! Sorry! Hi, my name is Ivy and this is my sister Julien, although I'm sure you already know that!" he said, smile wide.

"Yeah, um, what's up?" Harmony asked, kinda confused on what was going on.

"I was wondering, you have so many friends like the blonde girl, the one who looks mean all the time, Nina, and the others! And as you can tell me and Julien aren't really that much of approachable people, cause I'm a little more hyper then a lot of people and then Blue over here is a little cold hearted.

"But that doesn't mean we can't make friends! Julien went ice skating and she met this girl named Luna, I heard she was cool! Of course Luna moved so she wasn't in walking distance to the rink anymore, and she got married to someone named Eve and they have a daughter named Coco, she posts to Instagram a lot, but Jule's hasn't seen her in a while so I don't know if she really counts as a friend anymore...And I used to have a friend named Robin, but he was imaginary so I don't know if he count's either."

Ivy kept going, getting more and more off topic each second. "Robin was my uncle and but he died before I was born. I wish I could've met-"

"Ivy, what were we here for? You got off track."

"Oh!" The redhead shook his head at the reminder of his sister and went back to what he was talking about. "Sorry! Blue helps me stay on what I was doing, Blue’s my nickname for her....anyway! Friends! How do you make them?"

The question caught Harmony off guard. How she made friends? She didn't know! She just made them, and right now she wanted to sleep. But she couldn't tell him that or else he'd be disappointed....

"I-um. I guess I'm just myself to them! You just have to show who you are to somebody and if they like you as well, then you just keep talking and then...it goes from there!"

Ivy seemed to smile even wider and turned around in a goodbye, Julien simply nodding and following him. For the rest of class Harmony sat at her bench, half asleep and half awake. However, it was when a loud cry filled the air that she jumped from her seat and finally brought her back into consciousness. 

She realized that class was over, and cry came from the boy Austin from up front, and it was directed to the person on the floor...Ivy.

Austin was a really loud and disruptive boy. He had spiky blond hair and pale skin, his brown eyes cruel and mouth in a smirk. He was staring down at Ivy, who was shaking.

Julien was standing in the background, absolutely seething.This was the first time Harmony had seen her with anything but a blank face, never showing emotion at all. This time, she was crimson with rage as she stomped forward, ready to punch the boy in the face so hard she'd knock him out! Before she was able to do so Mme. Sharpe stepped in, gripping the her hand on the girl's shoulder. Jule growled-growled- as her teacher started to talk.

"Austin Bourgeois, I will not tolerate any violence in my classroom! Pushing a student is strictly forbidden and I will suggest you go to the principals office while you're ahead."

He only scowled. "Why should I? This-this retard wouldn't shut up! It’s his fault, he was asking for it!"

"Out. Now."

Austin stamped his foot and crossed his arms. "Make me!"

"I will call your mother and she will not be-" the adult started, not even needing to finish her sentence before the boy in trouble seemed to give up. The mayor's wife was not somebody to reckon with.

"Ugh! Fine! But you," he pointed to Ivy with a snarl. "Are never going to talk with me ever again you freak!" He reluctantly stomped out of the room, Mme. Sharpe watching to make sure he actually left before letting go of her student. 

Julien, newly released, raced forward and fell to the ground in front of her shaking brother. She could see his panicked face loud and clear and he held out his hands to her, stumbling before they locked together. Julien was obviously still livid, but she chose to hold that down as she pressed her brothers forehead to her own, whispering things to him that the class couldn't hear.

His rigid breathing seemed to slow down little by little, the class only watching. Harmony, worried, raced down the stairs and was about to sit down next to the two when two arms shot out and stopped her. They belonged to Nina and Kit, whom of which both shook their heads; a silent warning for her not to come any closer to the teens on the ground. The family needed their moment, and they feared that if Harmony got involved she would make things worse.

Ivy was soon calming down, but every once in a while he would stutter some incoherent marvel, the one that hit really close to home though, was when he stuttered out, "I-I-I only took Harmony's advice, w-what did I do wrong?"

Guilt wracked the brunettes body as she realized what happened. Ivy tried to befriend Austin, and he replied in true Austin style...

God she was an idiot! She led the boy right to failure! She had to apologize! She was so stupid wasn't she? Why didn't she just befriend him instead? The girl began to spiral, going down and down further the rabbit hole. She should've helped him out, she was so selfish, focusing on her pain and tiredness when she should've been working with him and his sister instead. None of this would've happened if only she wasn't such a-

"AKUMA!" The shout of her cousin drew out Harmony from her mind. It was true, a butterfly had appeared, fluttering through the open window the class had.

"KIDS!" Mme. Sharpe called out when she laid her eyes on the insect, noticing what was going on. Her face was contorted with worry for her students. "GET OUT OF THE RANGE OF THE AKUMA!"

As if they were playing hide and seek every single student leaped behind a bench or some sort of cover, like the trashcan in the corner of the room.

Everyone...minus the twins. Ivy and Julien were still in the center of the room, Ivy calmed down and taking normal breaths. 

The two whipped their heads up and gawked at the butterfly as it came closer and closer to them. At the last second Julien pushed her brother out of the way, the akuma entering the girls small and thin black necklace. As the rest of the class's hopes fell Julien could only hear the voice of the villain behind it all.

  
"Néant, I am Menteuse, I believe you know who I am? Anyway, your brother was hurt and you're tired of it happening. I will give you the power to make sure they never do it again, actually, making sure they aren't able to speak ever again! Do you agree?"

"Julien...no," Ivy muttered, voice choked up as he watched the purple mask flutter away and mist cover his sister. When the smoke cleared Julien was no more. In her place was a well dressed void. Seriously, her whole body, skin, skeleton, muscles, gone. It was only purple and black swirling mist in the shape of a person.

She had blinding white eyes, nobody really able to look into them for a long period of time unless they wanted to never see again. Her short cut hair was changed so it was long and a dark black, floating above her head like gravity was nothing to it. She had on a violet dress coat with coattails going down past her shoes along with white pants getting criss-crossed with black stripes and her dress shoes were white as well. Her necklace turned into a well done bow tie that was loose around her neck.

The akuma had no mouth, yet everybody could hear her warped voice call out to them.

"My name is Néant, and you all will bow to my wrath! For too long have I been silent and emotionless, but this is the last straw! Now, if you don't have anything nice to say, you can't say anything at all!"

"Of course she got akumatized for that retard!" Came the taunt of Austin in the doorway, obviously leaving the principals office to see what all the commotion was. With a swift move so fast everybody questioned what they saw, Néant flicked her wrist and a throwing star the same void like look as herself flung into the blond's forehead. It stuck, and as everybody cringed Austin only tried to look up at it in confusion. He seemed to be in no pain at all, and in fact, he felt nothing of the sort.

He scoffed and was about to open his big mouth when suddenly the misty ninja star began to spread down his face and to his lips; the mist solidified and it looked like a purple steel was covering his mouth. Slowly, ever so slowly, it began to move up. It was heading to cover his nose, and once the boy realized this he began to panic, knowing that he might suffocate.

"Is he going to die?" Kit whispered, shell shocked and frozen in place like the rest of the class. She trembled as she watched, Micah reluctantly coming over to wrap his arm around her shoulders in a makeshift hug. "He-he can't die right? Right?"

Nobody answered her. Kit was pure, the most pure one out of the whole class never mind her friend group, and things seemed to pass over her head. People liked to take this for granted, using her and treating her like a doormat. Dirty jokes, wordplay's with cuss words, stuff like that never fazed her, and people took it for granted. Slowly, everybody was teaching her to see things differently and look at them from a different angle. Kit was doing better now, she could see things she couldn't before, but now? Telling her Austin might die? No matter how mean he was Kit still had a soft spot for life, and hurting her wasn't going to be part of the plan.

"No, no Mouse, he's-Dame Rouge will stop Néant before anything will happen," Micah comforted. Again, he hated show emotion, but it seemed his longest friend was an exception. Suddenly, it hit Harmony that she was the one meant to fix this. She was the one to became the hero that will save everyone.

The girl nearly groaned before catching herself. What was she doing? She took this responsibility and she had no right to be complaining about it. Sure, her arms hurt, her back hurt, she wanted to stay safe and out of the face of danger, she didn't want to disappoint everyone in Paris...but that was something else. Right now she needed to leave the room somehow, get a distraction, sneak away. She just needed to do something!

Néant kept throwing her stars, covering nearly everybody's mouth. Nina, Willow, the quiet kid who always sat in the corner, almost everyone who decided to stand up and peak at the new akuma. Mme. Sharpe called out to all who could hear her, shouting at them to leave the room, to find a more safe spot to hide out.

Everybody followed her word, minus Harmony, she stayed behind so she could transform in peace. It wasn't always she could escape from her teachers watch, and for once she was able to stay behind without being worried about being spotted. The akuma cackled and created a large ninja star underneath her feet, using it to fly out the window-what was it with all the akuma's a being able to fly? It was honestly annoying.

Shaking the unimportant question out of her mind the teen took a deep breath and made eye contact with the kwami that flew out of her cardigan pocket. Tikki winked and smiled, trying to make Harmony smile away the grim look on her face that she never realized was there.

"You can do this!" She tried to encourage.

"Yeah, yeah sure..."

"Harmony...are you okay?"

"...Yeah," The girl averted her gaze and sighed. She didn't want to do this. She really did not want to do this. Néant was a powerful akuma, and if she ever got caught in the enemies crossfire it was all over with; she couldn't speak, so she wouldn't be able to call on her lucky charm....

"Tikki, it's now or never."

* * *

Dame Rouge was distant as she flew over Paris. At every twist and turn it seemed that there was at least three people with the purple mist surrounding them. It was...horrific. With only ten minutes airborne Dame landed at the gates of the Agreste mansion, Chat Noir standing there waiting for her. Automatically she caught something from the vibe he was giving off, it was like he was a mixed of pissed off and sad at the same time.

"Chat, are you okay?" She asked, making sure her own feelings of fear and agony (for she was still hurting, no matter how the suit dulled it) were no where to be spied.

"Yeah, it's just..." he paused to try and find the right words. "My self proclaimed nephew was one of the first caught by the akuma. He had texted me in a panic and it hurt to read. We just-we just need to get this girl down and out as quickly as we can before these people drop like flies." Dame nodded, she felt the same.

So many people would die if they didn't conquer this akuma fast enough, and their blood would be on her hands....

"So, the special heroes of Paris!" Came the voice of the certain akuma ahead of them. Both the adult and the teen whipped around and stood on guard, both ready and not ready for this new fight. "I can't wait to rip your breath from your lungs, along with anything else you have to say!"

One by one she began to throw star after star, Chat and Dame just barely dodging them all. They went at it for minutes upon minutes on end, taking forever in Harmony's point of view, until it seemed Néant had given up. She cried out before dissolving her void star, falling to the ground, simply standing there with her head hanging low. Without thinking, Dame Rouge began to head closer to the akuma, Chat Noir warning her too late. She was confused about what happened, and there was something else in her that wondered if the akuma was okay-her fall severely sudden.

With a loud battle roar the akuma flung up her leg, kicking her enemy in the gut. She watched with sick sanctification as Dame Rouge flew back-Chat Noir noting how Néant had odd strength-and rammed right through the window leading to the training room. The younger was winded when she landed on her back, tears already falling from her eyes from all the pain that was simply added on to what she was already feeling.

Laying there Harmony took a second to think about what her life had become. She was on her back in the middle of the training room with glass surrounding her on all sides. Her arms, legs, feet, chest, everything was bruised and battered and once she detranformed the pain was going to be agonizing. With how hard her head hit the ground it was a miracle if she didn't get at least a concussion, and the hero was sure if anybody else had just gotten the beat she had, then they would be dead.

Hesitantly, she reached up to inspect the pain underneath her left eye. She thought it was just a bruise, but when she winced once it was touched and her hand came back with scarlet liquid, she thought otherwise.

This was the first akuma attack where she drew blood and it was...terrifying. Seeing the blood drew her into the reality of her work. She could die. She could _die._ At any given moment she could die and her father wouldn't ever see her again. Her friends wouldn't see her again. Nobody would ever see her again!

Carefully, Dame Rouge sat up, leaning so far forward it looked like an invisible wall was weighing her down. As quiet as a mouse Chat Noir landed next to her from the shattered window, crouching down to cup her face in his hands. He wiped away her tears and gathered her into his arms like he was her parent, saying nothing as she began to sob.

He felt like a protective father, and just like a father would be, he was confused-and a little hurt-when Harmony scrambled to get out of his grasp out of the blue. He let her do so, and felt a pang in his heart as she wiped away the liquid that was flowing down her face. Her cut smeared red on her cheek as it trickled down to her chin.

"Are you okay?" Chat asked, genuinely concerned.

"Yeah-yeah I'm fine," his partner whispered. She was obviously lying, any person with half a brain could tell.

"Harmony, I need you to tell the truth. Are you okay?"

"I am telling the truth! I'm fine!"

"Harmony-"

"I TOLD YOU I'M FINE!" The snap echoed around the room, both the teen and adult freezing for how sudden it was. "We have an akuma to take care of," she croaked. Chat nodded and grabbed the girls arms to help her stand up. Once again another injury was spotted as when any weight was placed on Harmony's right ankle she cried out in pain. It was broken or sprained or something because she absolutely refused to walk on it.

"We can't do this without any help," Adrien said, stating the obvious. It was a miracle Néant hadn't come in to attack yet, and because of that they had very limited time until she did. Dame Rouge nodded and took a deep breath, suppressing the tears that were threatening to spill once more. She reached for her yo-yo, throwing it up in the air for her lucky charm.

The sequence made the girl wheeze, taking more energy then she had. If Chat Noir wasn't holding her up there was no doubt she would've fallen over. The mentioned hero was the one to grab the item mid air, giving a curious noise at what it was.

It was rope, but it wasn't ordinary. The beginning of the rope wasn't frayed like normal, no, but in it's place was a small cartoon fox head. The end of the rope as well had a tiny tail, like the rope itself was the animals skinny body. Harmony gave a small coo at the cute sight and together her and her partner limped over to the miracle box, snatching the fox necklace.

"Who would be able to use this? It has to be someone Julien won't hurt..." At the same time the two turned to look at each other, knowing who the other had in mind.

* * *

Ivy was sitting in his living room in the arms of his mothers when a knock on the door rang through out the silence, his Mother-Kagami-was the first to get up and inspect the door. Even if his Mom-Ondine-had more muscles, she was intent on holding onto her son then have to fight against the akuma; and even then they felt like they couldn't..it isn't everyday your twin or daughter gets akumatized and tries to kill Paris.

The small gasp from the door where his Mother was peaked the boy's interest as he got up-feeling relief in the fact that he could stand up, he hated sitting still for so long- and went to see who it was. He, too, gasped as he saw both heroes of Paris standing in his doorway, the Ladybug of the two looking a little worse for wear.

His Mom got up and went to see what her wife was doing and immediately her paternal instincts kicked in. Ondine raced forward and carefully took Dame Rouge from Chat's grasp. She gently placed her on the couch and began to examine her injuries, turning to her son.

"Hon, get me the first aid kit please. It's in the bathroom in the cabinet, it should be front and center." He did what he was told, repeating to himself what he had to do over and over again until he was able to give the kit to his mom. Ivy was about to head off to his room when Chat Noir stopped him, holding out a red and black box to the boy. What was going on?

"Ivy Tsurugi," he started, causing everybody in the room to look towards them. "With Dame Rouge out of commission we need a new hero to help with the battle against Néant. Will you take the miraculous of the fox to be one step ahead of Menteuse?" The boy hesitated and Dame could see it in his wide eyes that he was going through the mental list of If he was ready to do this or not. 

After a few minutes the teen shook his head to clear it and nodded, taking the necklace and clasping it around his neck. "I'm ready!"

One bright light and kwami explanation later Ivy was standing determined and only a little fearful. "Trixx! Let's start the show!"

* * *

Néant flew around Paris, searching for the ones she was meant to take down. They had suddenly gone missing, not in the room she threw the younger one too. She growled in frustration, landing on the ground to inspect the places she couldn't see from up above, not noticing the few that landed a few feet away from her.

"Néant! Stop right where you are!" Came the voice of someone new. Twisting around with a snarl leaving her lips, the akuma took in the two standing in front of her. Chat Noir was there, but next to him, was somebody she didn't recognize.

He had on high top sneakers that were plain white at the tips and a mandarin orange on the rest. He had long pants that flared out so they were loose and big on him, and there were huge cuffs on the bottom that were white, but the rest of the pant legs were orange as well, minus the one stripe of white going down the sides. He had on an orange vest that went down past his chest, but broke off so it crossed on his back, and then met back up in the front again like it was a belt-leaving a window of his chest open.

That was over a white shirt that went just past the boys hands, along with black gloves as a contrast. The best part of his outfit however was the large tail and fox ears. The tail was huge and fluffy, orange with a white tip liked it was dipped in paint and the ears were orange on the outside and white on the inside, with black tips to tie it all together.

His mask was pitch black like the rest of the heroes were and, just like the others, had a gold accent. The gold was a triangle right above his nose, but the bottom was cut off by the mask, so it mimicked a fox nose. He grinned and revealed one sharp fang, gleaming in the light.

"Vixen is here to save the day, y'know, since Dame Rouge can't cause she's injured to badly!" The mentioned girl cringed when she heard what Vixen said. She was back at Ondine and Kagami's, the former pressing her to stay because she was too hurt to do anything except put herself in more danger. As she watched the fight go on on an iPad as it was being live recorded by the news, she couldn't help but let her mind race.

When Vixen called his illusion and made the civilian of himself to distract Néant, Dame wondered if she was smart enough to think about that. When Chat Noir and Vixen shared the duty of running up behind the distracted akuma, who was focused on the illusioned Ivy, and wrapping the fox rope around her, she imagined if she would be good enough to come up with that.

_She was failing as a hero._

She was so failing as a hero wasn't she? She watched as Néant was defeated as easily as slicing a knife through warm butter and her thoughts kept jabbing at her worth. It took everything in the teen to not just break down then and there. Chat Noir and a new hero took down an akuma faster then she ever did. She would always disappoint the people around her. She would always mess up and get hurt in the process. A stray tear fell down her cheek and landed on the iPad she had watched the fight scene take place.

"Are you alright?" Kagami asked, who came back with a new ice pack for her shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah I'm-I'm fine," She responded back, quickly wiping her face. It was in that moment that Vixen and Chat Noir giggled through the door, having defeated the villain on the rage, stopping when they saw the grim look on their partner's face. Chat was the first to speak up, but was only met with misplaced hostility.

"Are you okay-"

"Yes I’m fine okay?!” She snarled. “Just, just give me the rope. Let me get this over with."

Reluctantly the teen was given the lucky charm, and without waiting or warning she threw it up in the air, her miraculous ladybug turning everything new again. In place of her injuries were only severe sore spots, no broken ankle anymore. Her bruises where the same, but the cut underneath her cheek healed, leaving a small and just barely noticeable scar. She didn't need to purify the akuma, as Chat Noir already cataclysmed it, so all she ever did to help was fix the mess...pathetic.

Quietly Dame Rouge got up and thanked the Tsurugi's for the help, nodding at Vixen and Chat Noir as she used her yo-yo to fly out the window and to her home. The wind wasn't as freeing like it normally felt...

* * *

"Are you okay?" Ivy asked his sister after she got home after her akumatization. Ivy nodded, about to leave it at that, before she opened her mouth.

"Did I hurt anybody?" She wondered, more so asking if she hurt her family then any strangers.The redhead shook his head.

"I mean, not any of us, but you did almost suffocate a bunch of kids. I wonder what they felt like...anyway, there's clips if you want to see it!"

Julien shook her head, changing the subject.

"Mme. Sharpe called. She wanted to know if I was okay," she said. Ivy nodded.

"She did that with Nina I think too, the girl who was called out for procrastinating? I wonder if she's okay, we should talk to her. I wonder if she's a nice friend..." he paused and began to twiddle his thumbs.

"Tell me about that game you heard about?" As Ivy went on Julien closed her eyes. She listened to her brother, but also let her mind trail off.

Suffocation. The state or process of dying from being deprived of air or unable to breathe. The word hit the girl like she had ran into a brick wall; was that how she felt sometimes? Like she couldn't breathe or...was it something else? She liked not talking all the time, but she did want to talk at least some times.

But at least she had her family, her brother. She had Luna and her own family...and she had the rink as well. She touched her necklace, a gift from her mother. When she came back from the the akumatization the jewelry was sitting on her bed, a note saying it was from her mom. It was only a small charm, just an ice skate with the eiffiel Tower engraved onto it, but she felt a calling to wear it whenever she could.

"Ivy," she said, getting up. "I'm going to go to the ice rink." The boy stopped and his grin faltered, yet he respected it if his sister wanted to leave. "If you see Luna tell her I said hi!!"

* * *

Harmony landed at her apartment and slipped into the alleyway next to the buildings to detransform. Tikki wanted to talk, but the human only ignored her, she just wanted to lay down and sleep. Limping to her apartment door the girl expected her father to be in his room like usual, yet was shocked when she found him in the living room with his head in his hands. He still looked a mess, hair shiny with either water or grease, dark shadows under his eyes and his hair grown out and in need of a cut.

He whipped his head up to spy his daughter coming in through the room, and his face morphed from relief, to anger, to sadness, and then back to relief so quickly it was like he was a cartoon character.

"Harmony, where were you?" He asked, voice strained and like he was genuinely asking. It was the first time he had reached out since his mothers death and this is what he says?

"I was...hiding from the akuma," she simply stated in response. Luka didn't seem satisfied with her answer and crossed his arms, not sitting back in his chair but instead leaning more forward in worry.

"Why didn't you come here instead? I was worried!"

"Because I would've been in harms way."

"But why didn't you at least text me, or-"

"Since when did you ever care anyway!?" The outburst shocked them both, Harmony not sure why that left her lips and Luka confused on why she was getting to riled up.

"What? Harm, where is this all coming from?"

"Oh please, like you don't know? You leave me in the moment I need you most and then lie to me about my mothers death! Why didn't you tell me she was Ladybug?"

"How did you-"

"It doesn't matter," Harmony began, "because even if I tell you you're not going to care! You're just going to hide back into your room and never come out unless you need food! I need a dad, Dad. Why can't you see!" Luka let out a small gasp at the words and looked...heartbroken.

"What am I not seeing?" He was so calm, how was he so calm?

"THAT I COME HOME BROKEN AND BRUISED AND YOU NEVER CARE TO KNOW. YOU JUST HIDE AWAY, DON'T YOU THINK I WANT TO DO THAT TOO? TO CURL UP INTO MY COVERS AND WISH THE WORLD AWAY?" There were tears going down her face, but it didn't even matter anymore.

"I WANT TO SCREAM AND CRY BUT I CAN'T BECAUSE THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO ARE WORSE OFF, BUT I WANT TO GRIEVE AND I WANT TO SCREAM AND I WANT TO-" Harmony stopped when the reality of what was going on slapped her in the face. Her hands covered her mouth as a sob wracked through her body, she wanted comfort, but when Luka went to hug her she shied away.

"Just-just leave me be," she muttered, racing up to her room. She didn't stay behind to see what her Dad's reaction was, she didn't stay behind to apologize, she just ran.

Once she made it to her safe space the girl slammed down onto her bed, curling up into a ball. The tears were flowing freely now, with no remorse, something they hadn't done in a long time.

"Harmony," Tikki began, flying out of the girls pocket, "oh Harmony..."

The kwami began to try and wipe the liquid off of her face, but it only ended in the teen cupping her into her hands.

"Tikki, I don't deserve you," she said. "I really don't deserve the miraculous do I? I'll just fail every time...I'll disappoint everybody, and I'm endangering both myself and everybody else in the process." Reaching up, Harmony let go of Tikki and went to take off the earrings, ignoring the confused questions coming from her friend.

"Tikki?"

"Yes?"

"I renounce you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Will j ever stop making akuma’s with suits? No. Never.
> 
> More about Ivy: 
> 
> -He's Aromantic 
> 
> -He likes to fidget with things in his hands, mostly popping things or using Rubix cubes and the such
> 
> -He's 5'9"
> 
> \- For those who don't know I made Ondine a brother named Robin who died when she was young, I made it so when Robin heard stories of Robin he began to imagine Robin as an imaginary friend and he only stopped when it hit tiny Ivy that Robin wasn't "real"
> 
> More about Julien: 
> 
> \- She's lesbian 
> 
> -She's 5'9 as well
> 
> -protective of Ivy
> 
> \- She was close friends with an older girl named Luna at the ice rink, but they lost contact when Luna moved to a different part of Paris and got married to her spouse Eve, and then had a child named Coco. They have hence moved back, but Julien doesn't know that yet.


	7. I Am Harmony Couffaine!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big big big BIG thank you to my friend Andy for helping me translate the Spanish here! I'll have a round about translation in the end notes!! There will also be some fun facts about some of the past Ladybugs!
> 
> Also be warned that there is a brief discussion about abortion here, just a small warning for those that are triggered or become uncomfy with the talk of it. It's small tho and implied-the word is never used.

Marinette Couffaine _._

A baker.

A wife.

A mother.

A savior of Paris.

Dead.

  
Except she was alive, in her heart. In the earrings. 

Ever since her death day she had gotten closer and closer to her past heroes. Getting closer meant they shared stories of times of their past, exchanging them was a daily ritual-kind of like the bedtime stories Mari would read to Harmony every night. Tonight it was Marinette's turn, and she knew just the tale to tell...

* * *

Marinette was trembling. She had her whole life ahead of her, and this could ruin it. She was only twenty-two, not even married yet! And yet here she was, sitting in the bathtub with her legs up to her chest.

It was funny how one stick could change someone's life so drastically.

She was pregnant. She was pregnant, and a hero.

How was this going to work? How was she going to be able to keep being the savior of Paris when she had a child on the way? The woman shook her head and raked her hand through her hair, standing up and throwing the test out. With shaking hands she opened the door and found herself face to face with her boyfriend, who was going to knock on the door to see if she was okay.

"Love?" He asked, reading her distressed face perfectly. "What's wrong?" He opened his arms right away, welcoming her in a soft and warm embrace.

The woman wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, sobbing. God, when she was in high school she thought she would be more excited for this. Then again, she thought her crush on Adrien was healthy as well, so small her was famous for being wrong. Together, the two made it to the couch so they could be in a better position.

Marinette sat there in her husband's arms as long as she needed-exactly how long, she didn't know. Soon she had calmed down, simply rubbing her tired and red eyes, Luka still holding her.

"What's wrong?" He asked again, worried sick. Mari hiccuped.

"S-so you know how you've always wanted children?" He nodded.

"Yeah, but you said you wanted to wait until Hawkmoth was defeated first," the man mentioned, referring back to a conversation they had a couple years ago.  
Mari nodded, leaning back into Luka's arms, him throwing a blanket over them. She sighed.

"Well, it's too late for that. I'm pregnant, Luka."

She felt him freeze under her weight, Marinette tensing for how he was going to react.

He wanted children, that was something he had made clear, but he also made clear that he would respect what she wanted as well. That meant that children had to wait, but now? Now she didn't know.

"Is-is this what you want?" He asked. She could tell he wanted to jump up and down, to get his hopes up, but he hesitated. He was waiting for what she wanted.  
She gulped.

"I'm not sure Luka. I want children as well, but with Hawkmoth out there and us being the only ones able to defeat him? I don't know..."

"So then what are you going to do?"

The question really made Marinette stop and think.

She wanted children. Luka wanted children. But they were heroes, and still young, how would she be able to fight crime and then also have a child on the way? She could make a plan...but how would it work? Did she really want to get rid of this child?

Everything was too much for her, she just wanted to lay down and never get back up again. Not for an akuma, not to be a hero, not even to be a functioning adult. Marinette sighed and cuddled into Luka, savoring the warmth of his body.

As she began to drift off she could vaguely hear him humming a song, he had only told her it was a surprise for her. She gave an absentminded smile and let sleep take her away.

* * *

  
"¿Y? ¿Qué pasó después? ¿Te quedaste con la niña o no?" Came the curious voice of one of the Spanish speaking Ladybugs. He was a very lively and bright fellow, meaning story time was one of his favorite times of the day. He had a habit of interrupting stories, however, because he was so excited.

"Now, now Miguel," said Laurette. "Let's let Marinette finish." Miguel nodded, his grin never fading from his lips as he leaned forward. Mari giggled.

"Yes, I did keep the child," she responded, thankful for the foreign language classes she was taking with the Bilingual Ladybugs. "Who do you think the new Ladybug is?"A chorus of coo's and laughs echoed around the room, Mari joining in.

"What did you do for akuma's?" Asked Oliver in her smooth British accent.

"Yeah, 'owed you do it mate?" Blu wondered, leaning back into Ksnon and Light, her boyfriends she met in the earrings. Seeing them happy and thriving together always made Mari miss her husband. How was he? Was he taking care of Harmony?

"Marinette? Are you okay?" Laurette asked, concerned for the woman who had started to stare into space, to which Mari responded with a nod. Laurette was like the mother figure to everybody, she was always willing to be there to vent to or to share your worry's to.

She was just an all around fantastic person, and her son was a Ladybug as well, yet he didn't die in the hands of battle. He lived on to have a domestic life with his wife, and died naturally. Laurette was still able to visit him, everyone could visit their passed loved ones, but she chose to stay in the earrings most days. She was willing to help the newer heroes more then seeing her family. It was touching and sweet, but Mari never failed to notice the despaired looks she shared to the door that led to all of the deceased.

It was especially hard to watch her care for the young ones, Ryan and Meredith, both kids still in their teens. Lumi, an older Ladybug, helped care for them as well, but it was mostly Laurette.

"Well, for the akuma's," Mari began, getting back on track. "Now that's a completely different story."

* * *

  
"What do you mean you're having a child?!" Chat Noir exclaimed, just barely keeping himself from falling off the edge of the roof they were on. Shock, confusion, and a little hint of worry painted his pale face.

"Yes, Chat. I'm pregnant."

The cat hero shifted so he didn't fall to his death and stared with wide eyes at his partner. "What-what are you going to do? We have a villain to catch! How are you going to be able to fight?"

"Me and Viperion made a plan, don't worry Chaton."

"And what exactly is this plan?"

Ladybug sat next to the man, whom was only gazing in worry. He was soft, at least he was able to admit it now, and seeing him so worked up for her was a nice change from all the flirting. It took Chat Noir a few years to get over Ladybug. It was only one night after a certain akuma attack that he finally came to his senses.  
Many people had died. The akuma sent large and murderous spiders after everybody in Paris, the civilian was a avid bug lover and got pissed when a friend killed a spider in fear.

Ladybug had seen so many die, kids and adults alike. It was when Mr. Carracci, her favorite art teacher from school, died in her arms, right in front of his spouse no less, that she had had enough of Chats behavior. He had the audacity to make a comment about going on a date later, and she just lost her temper.

She screamed until her voice gave out and her throat was raw.

"NOW IS NOT THE TIME CHAT!" She cried over the screams in the distance. "I JUST WATCHED AN INNOCENT MAN DIE RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIS FAMILY, AND YOU DECIDE TO MAKE A JOKE ABOUT GOING ON A DATE WITH ME? ENOUGH! NOT ONLY HAVE I TOLD YOU THAT I AM TOGETHER ALREADY WITH SOMEONE, BUT BRINGING IT UP AND HAVING IT INTERFERE WITH YOUR WORK? NO MORE! STOP THIS OR I WILL REVOKE THE MIRACULOUS!"

She was harsh, but she had reached her breaking point. It was only after the attack was finished and they both sat down and talked did Chat realize what he was doing was wrong. They had been better partners then before, after they talked, and Ladybug was proud of him. Now, they were simply friends and because of this they were able to have more open and honest conversations. Akuma's were able to be defeated faster, and so much more.

"You would still be defending Paris, but instead of me, you would be working together with Viperion, or maybe Carapace or Rena Rouge," she grinned. "You would either kill the butterfly, or have Viperion send it to me and I can purify it and then use my Miraculous Ladybug either way! Viperion also volunteered to come between me and the akuma attack to get the lucky charm if needed."

* * *

  
"¡Sabía que eso iba a pasar! ¡Choca esos cinco!" Cried Miguel, holding his hand up towards Light, who flinched a little, before very quietly placing his hand on Miguel's in a short high five. Mari chuckled a little before Cathryn, the Ladybug who was in charge of watching the console, raced into the room, running right through the door and screaming that something was wrong.

When Marinette joined the earrings everything was black and that was all she could see. Now, she realized that there was so much more.

The place she appeared was the Console room, where the big monitor, that looked out into the world through the earrings, was. That was one of the only things in that dark room, other then the door to the rest of the dead and a couple of chairs for the ones on guard.

The rest if the earrings? It was like a one floored apartment. There was a large living room that was able to fit every single one of them, if they squished together. There was a TV and weights, the knitting and sewing corner, and more. Currently, that's where they all were. They also had a dining room, but because everyone was, well, dead, and they didn't have to eat; they usually only used the large table for board games and craft nights.

One of the greatest things, however, was the one large hallway that stemmed from between the living room and the dining room. It went on for miles, and lining each side was a different room for each person.

Light, Blu, and Ksnon, had their own room where they hung out slept together. Miguel had one that reminded him of his home and family-with pictures and items from his childhood. Laurette's was very bright and always smelt like home made cookies.

Marinette's was matching her interests and her home. She had more sewing materials then what was in the living room and pictures of Harmony and Luka. Ultimately, it made her feel warm and happy inside.

But when Cathryn raced into the room she felt the complete opposite. The only reason anybody would come in from their duties of watching the monitor is of two options. Either there was something wrong with the earrings, or there was something wrong with the holder.

Her daughter could be in danger.

The only person who ran out of the room faster then her was Laurette, always willing to help a Ladybug in danger, especially the one who was a daughter of her friend. As many past heroes that could fit into that room did, Mari, Laurette, and Miguel up front with Cathryn. She pointed to the screen where Harmony was seen...talking with Tikki.

"Tikki, I don't deserve you. I really don't deserve the miraculous do I?" The teen had said, breaking her mother's heart. Where...where was this coming from?

"What are we going to do?" Cathryn asked, terrified for what was going to happen. Miguel widened his eyes, twisting his head to face Mari. He was a huge family person, so seeing this shook him to the core. He didn't even ask the question and she already knew what he was asking with his brown eyes.

"I know, Miguel. I need to do something."

"Mari, you need to go, before she renounces the miraculous and takes it out of her ears! Then you won't be able to do anything at all!" Laurette budded in. 

"Tikki?"

"Yes?"

"MARI NOW!"

"I renounce you."

* * *

  
The last thing Harmony was expecting to happen that day was to see her mother again.

She was just about to take out the earrings, already had said the words that forced Tikki to go back into the jewelry, when her mother faded into reality in front of her-coming from the earrings with a whoosh. She paused once she saw the concerned and worried look on Mari's face, and it caused Harmony to lose all grip on reality.

Harmony collapsed onto Mari, sobbing, the woman not even hesitating to engulf her into an embrace. The younger welcomed it and leaned into Marinette, not caring about anything but what she was feeling. It felt...good after so long of hiding what she felt. She was finally able to let it all out, finally able to let it out and not hold back in fear of letting others down or anything like that.

"Mom-Mom I can't do this anymore! I can't, I can't, I can't!"

"Talk to me, Cupcake. What's wrong?"

"I-I-I-...I'm such a disappointment as a hero! You were such an amazing savior and I can't do anything right or like you! And-and-and-" She paused to cry, trying to breath through everything she was feeling. "I can't even be sad about this because there are other people worse then me like Dad- _Dad_!"

Suddenly everything she said to him in the mere moments before came rushing back to her, and the sheer look of terror on her face made Mari's heart cry out for her. Harm scrambled to stand up, most likely to apologize to her father, but Marinette lurched forward and grabbed her daughters wrist before she could leave, forcing the girl to stop and look at her mother.

Pausing, she went down to her knees on her bed once more, her head hanging low.

"I yelled at him...he didn't deserve that. I'm so stupid, I'm so, so, so-"

"Cupcake, stop." Mari was firm, not mad, but stating what she had to. "I don't know what happened, but you need to hear this."

She opened her arms again and Harmony crawled over into them. The older let out the younger's bun so it was back to flowing down her back and she began to rake her hand through it; it was soothing.

"You said you were a disappointment of a hero?" She asked, Harmony nodded from where she was curled up in her lap. "Why would you think that?"  
The teen cringed at all her past attempts to defeat any and all akuma's.

"Because...I suck at defending people and-and I keep getting hurt and needing to call on other heroes! You were never like this Mom..."

"Cupcake, being a new hero means you are going to get hurt...mentally and physically. These akuma's are getting more and more aggressive, that doesn't mean you aren't a good hero. Calling on more heroes and help is going to be more and more common, that doesn't mean that you're a disappointment of a hero.

"Okay...but you didn't need this much help!"

"But, I did. Do you think I got so good right away?"

Harmony hesitated before nodding, starting to doubt if that was really true.

"I was a mess, not gonna lie. I was clumsy, I got hurt, but I eventually got better. I broke down like you are now."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It was a rough time, but I was given support, because my feelings were valid, just like yours. I got back up and tried again, because I knew that nobody would be able to save Paris if I wasn't around...however-"

She began to braid the younger's long hair.

"I may have tried again, but you need to decide for yourself. Are you willing to become Dame Rouge once more, or would you rather hand the torch to somebody else? Being a hero is not obligated, but you really need to dig down and think about what you want to do, and who you are. You're your own hero, not Ladybug, not Viperion, but _you._ " Suddenly, something magical happened. 

One by one more of the old miraculous holders began to fade in, Harmony recognizing them from the clips she had seen when she was given the earrings. One of them had a blond ponytail with a blue streak, a smirk plastered on her lips. A Hispanic man with shaggy black hair was there as well, wringing his hands together while saying something in Spanish to someone else, who Tikki had explained was the very first user the first week of fighting-she wanted to give a small history lesson to help out her new holder.

More and more people popped up, all of them worried for her and speaking to her in different languages. It was inspiring, heartwarming...and it made her feel determined.

"We all want ya to choose what ya want, love," ponytail girl, who's name started with a B Harmony was sure, said, elbowing a girl with a half shaved head of grey hair named Oliver (Harmony knew it was her for the fact she loved her hair.)

"We believe in you," Laurette added. 

"Sí." 

"And that's why we want to help you," Laurette finished, leaning forward and placing her hand onto Harmony's shoulder. The rest of the group followed, the ones who weren't able to hold her grasping onto the one's that could. They all closed their eyes and a glow-the same light blue color as them-began to shine bright. In that second Harm began to feel all her pains go away, bruises fading and the soreness being run out by this new aura. 

It was then that she realized what was going on. They were transferring parts of their strength to her-because they cared that much for her to succeed. It made Harmony want to cry with hope. When they were finished everyone seemed to slump a little, yet killed Harmony's worry that they gave too much-Cathryn reassuring that even if they, did their energy would come back to them when they reentered the earrings. 

It was in that moment that a thunk was heard on the balcony above and everyone in the room stopped what they were doing to stare. Mari gave one small look to her daughter and leaned in, giving her a kiss on the forehead.

"What will you decide? Who are you Harmony?" And with that Mari and everyone vanished with few goodbyes, disappearing into the earrings as Chat Noir barreled down her stairs with blood dripping down his cheek and panic written all over his face.

"Harmony, we have a problem."

"What's wrong?" Harm asked, shocked and confused to see what her partner. She was still trying to get over the Ladybug's visit, and this was odd, even for him.

"I'm not sure, but this akuma...he's the strongest we've faced so far."

 _What will you decide? Who are you Harmony?_ Her mother's words echoed in her head as the girl turned, facing herself head on in the mirror. Who was she? Was she willing to fight and help? _You're your own hero, not Ladybug, not Viperion, but you._

  
"Oh shit-" Chat hissed, turning around and grabbing the attention of the girl. A version of the leather clad hero stumbled down the stairs, except he didn't look the same. The only way she could tell it was meant to be a copy of him was because of it's sharp green eyes and the cat ears. Everything else was like black goo in the shape of a body...it was horrific.

"What's that?" Harmony called out in fear, watching as the Goo Chat began to try and fight his counter part.

"I'm not sure-" Adrien began through deep breaths "-but this akuma hit me, slapped me across the face, and _this...thing_ appeared! The akuma-Enfer he's calling himself-kept going on about facing our demons? So maybe that's why this little shit won't shut up about my guilt over my father!" The pained look in his eyes caused Harmony's heart to break. Who would be so hurt that they would get akumatized and send this monster after him?

The Goo Chat kept fighting, eventually getting down and tripping the human with his own leg. He fell, hard, and the thud of his head connecting to the ground made Harmony wince in sympathy.

"Harmony, get out of here! Transform, run, anything!" He cried out, not wanting her to get hurt. The girl in question hesitated. 

Chat was in danger she needed to save him!

**_But he told her to run, she had to do what he said._ **

If she didn't help him, he was going to die!

**_But she's a shitty hero anyway, and what was she going to do, hit the goo with a chair?_ **

  
And that's exactly what she did. Quickly, she grabbed the wooden stool she used when she sat and did her homework, and lifted it over her head, slamming it down on the Goo's own-causing it to get stuck. She hurriedly let go, and the thing was stunned, stopping what it was doing, before whipping back up and glaring at Harmony.

She was in trouble now! Frantically she wracked her brain for anything that could get this akuma thing away from both her and her partner, but nothing she had in mind seemed good enough. Last minute she reached back and grabbed the cup of water that was on the table behind her and splashed the being. For a second it did nothing, before it began to scream. The scream pierced the air and both human's in the room slapped their hands over their ears, surprised that they weren't bleeding.

Goo Chat began to melt, like the witch in that fairy tale she had heard about. Chat Noir screamed something before racing up the stairs, the younger assuming he had told her to follow him. She did so, and once they were both on top of the balcony, Chat grabbed her by the waist and launched them over the roof tops of Paris to the Agreste Mansion.

The teen glanced down at all the civilians as she did so, watching their pain and suffering. For every person there was at least two or three blob monsters that looked like them. She felt a wave of determination fly over her as the two landed through an open window and into the training room. Immediately, Harmony took out the earrings and stared at them in her hands.

Who was she, and what did she want to do?

Her name was Harmony Couffaine. She was the daughter of the famous musician Luka and the Ladybug hero Marinette Couffaine.

She was given the Miraculous after her mother died and she took the roll of becoming Dame Rouge.

She wasn't the best at it but...neither was her mother. She had failed many times as well.

Her feelings were valid.

She was her own hero.

She struggled, but she got back up. Because she was Harmony Couffaine.

And she? She was a hero.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ¿Y? ¿Qué pasó después? ¿Te quedaste con la niña o no? - And? What happened next? Did you keep the child {girl} or not? 
> 
> ¡Sabía que eso iba a pasar! ¡Choca esos cinco! - I knew that was going to happen! High five!
> 
> Miguel was someone I came up with while watching Coco again, I loved the idea of having different Ladybugs off all backgrounds-meaning there would be some that wouldn't speak English or French-so Coco gave me the idea of a Ladybug who speaks Spanish. "A Hispanic man with shaggy black hair was there as well, wringing his hands together while saying something in Spanish to someone else, who Tikki had explained was the very first user. " Is Miguel talking to Laurette!
> 
> Oliver was someone I came up with on a wim lol
> 
> Blu, Ksnon, and Light are actually characters of mine I created for a school project! They're anti-heroes, yet were still killed in the line of duty so they came into the earrings anyway. "One of them had a blond ponytail with a blue streak, a smirk plastered on her lips." is Blu. 
> 
> Ryan, Lumi, and Meredith are named after people in a discord server i'm on! 
> 
> Cathryn is my sister's oc!
> 
> I'll add drawings or picrews of them all to the character list whenever i can.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, comments are always welcome! Also, these kids are also in a fic labelled "Legends Never Die: The Characters" That is where you can see what they all look like and their personality's! There will be more characters I will be adding and after each chapter with their debut I will be adding their pictures to either that fic or this one. Stay tuned!


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